R e d e m p t i o n
by Nameria
Summary: "God... if you're real, then where were you when I needed you the most?"   R&R please! T to be safe. COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1: Where were you?

**Hello, firstly I'd like to apologize for my lack of updates; I'll be sad to say I will be discontinuing the iLove You iCarly story. I have no inspiration for it no longer… I have a project that will be a blessing to my fellow Brothers in Jesus Christ. To God be all the glory. **

**I do not own any of the characters listed from SEGA, except my own fan characters.**

**Also, I will NOT tolerate ANY bashing towards Christianity or any Christian individual, including myself. But I do accept critiques for the story. Without any furder ado, enjoy.  
>_<strong>

"_For this way God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. –John 3:16"_

Shadow closed the Bible he was reading the verse from.

"Hmph." He glared at it and stood up, throwing it softly on top of his dinner table. The red and crimson hedgehog walked slowly towards the bathroom door in his house and grabbed the doorknob and gradually opened the door, sliding himself inside. He removed his jacket, shirt, pants and shoes and placed them on top of the toilet. He moved himself in front of the mirror and stared at his reflection. He stared at himself for what seemed for hours, but were actually a few seconds. His life… he didn't understand why was he still living. A few years back, he thought that his only purpose was to defeat evil and all that he went through in A.R.K. But, now that all of this was gone, and now that Mobius was calm and no evildoers needed punishment, he felt empty; _hollow. _But he would refuse to believe there was a higher Being that created the heavens or give him supposed happiness and purpose. God was a myth for him. He was "one-hundred percent atheist" and he refused to believe there was a God. It was simply illogical to him; a myth, a made-up fairy tale that people made up so they can feel better about themselves. It was a lie to him. After an intense stare at himself, he broke his trance and got inside the bathtub and started to shower.

"_God loved the world…"_

The words echoed inside his head.

"_He gave His one and only Son…"_

He pleaded it to make it stop, but his supposed prayers were unanswered.

"_Everyone who believes in Him will not perish…"_

He started to clean his fur with soap and tried to ignore the Voice his ears heard inside of him.

"… _but have eternal life."_

"_Eternal life."_

"_Life."_

Shadow removed the soap lather from his ebony fur and after a few minutes he was out of the shower and proceeded to grab the towel. He started to remove the warm water out of his fur to be amazingly sparkly and dry. He grabbed the clothes that he had laid on top of the toilet a few minutes ago and threw it on the "dirty clothes bucket" or so he liked to call it, because it was indeed a bucket. He walked towards his bed, where he had his new set of clean clothes already laid out for him to wear.

After he got dressed with his red t-shirt, black jacket, some black jeans and his favorite Converse shoes, he put on his headset and rocked out to some music. He opened the door, grabbed his car and house keys, and headed towards his car. He thought it would be an ordinary day over at the park where the gang was going to meet for a friendly picnic and chat about life.

But he did not know his life was about to change.  
>_<em><br>_

"Lord, thank You for this amazing new day. Please use me to tell my friends that You are real. Put words in my mouth that come directly out of Yours; please, use me as Your instrument and let this day be of pure victory. In the name of Jesus, Amen."

Miles "Tails" Prower stood up from his previous kneeling position and proceeded to prepare the picnic at the Free Hills Park, which was the location of his planned evangelization picnic. It seemed like a nice idea and he had been preparing for this day. After long minutes of preparation, the picnic was perfectly laid out; a huge, blue and white mantle covered the soft grass below it. A beautiful brown basket with blue and white ribbons that combined with the mantle was the center piece, and from it a light smoke—signaling something hot and tasty inside it—made it tempting to open it. Next to the basket a group of assorted fruits formed a circle around the basket, and leaning against the basket a group of about twenty plates standing in vertical fashion completed the scene. Alongside with everything, some napkins and a jar of orange juice and another one of fruit punch complemented the scene perfectly. Tails grabbed some plastic cups out of a bag and placed them on top of the basket. His smile was beyond comprehension, and his tails wagged happily.

Tails had a highly scientific mind, but he noticed that none of the scientific theories or hypothesis added up to a common conclusion. He always had the "if God is real, why is the world suffering from hunger, wars, pain and all that stuff?" argument. But one day, he understood. God is not guilty of one's actions; He gave us a free will and He does not force himself toward an individual. God's love is far beyond anyone's limitations, and Tails understood that. He had changed a lot, and wanted his friends who weren't Christians yet to experience this amazing feeling that he felt.

To Tail's surprise, an early guest appeared, half hour before everyone else would get here.

"Shadow, I am so glad to see you!" the two-tailed fox greeted Shadow with a warm hug that Shadow didn't hesitate to give back.

"Thanks for inviting me, Tails," Shadow smiled shyly. "What are we doing today?" Shadow asked looking at the picnic Tails had set out beautifully.

"Just sit down and eat, have fun, and later on talk about life," Tails smiled, trying to not reveal the real purpose of the picnic.

"Doesn't sound bad," Shadow simply stated matter-of-factly and sat down on the mantle. Shadow made himself home and grabbed a plate and opened the basket, revealing a mountain of hot and sweet cinnamon rolls. He licked his lips with a smile and placed one of his victims on the plate. He then grabbed the fruit punch jar and poured the fruity liquid inside his plastic cup and took a quick zip, and munched down on his cinnamon roll, only to get a blank stare from Tails.

"What?" Shadow said defensively. He did _not _like being stared at while eating. And he did _not _want Tails eating_ his_ cinnamon roll.

"Won't you pray with me thanking the Lord for the food—"

"I won't do _anything _of that _ridiculous _subject," interrupted Shadow harshly, "do it to yourself if you want. But _I _won't do it."

Tails stood frozen cold staring at his own plate and felt a small tear build up, but managed to hold it. He then sighed and prayed silently as Shadow watched. He now felt bad for snapping like that at the fox, but Tails needs to learn to not do that to people.

For the rest of ten minutes, there was no word spoken whatsoever. Shadow finished his entire meal and so did Tails, but Tails' ears perked up. A small smile formed in his mouth as he saw Amy approach. She was another devoted Christian just like Tails.

"Here comes Amy!" Tails exclaimed.

Amy was now nineteen years old; she was taller, her hair was longer, and her body had developed gracefully. She looked grown up now. Shadow didn't let this go unnoticed; he stared at Amy from top to bottom, making Amy kind of uncomfortable and embarrassed at the same time. She was wearing a white tank top and some black jeans, and held her hair up in a ponytail, letting her curled quills fall down gracefully.

"H-hey Tails, h-hey Shads!" Amy greeted kindly.

"Hello," Shadow greeted as he smiled.

"God bless you, Amy! Thanks for coming!" Tails smiled and hugged Amy as she kneeled down.

A few minutes after Amy arrived, more of the gang started to appear and Shadow observed them all. Knuckles came after Amy, then Sonic, then Rouge, then Blaze, and then Espio. They all looked different except Rouge and Espio. Amy, Sonic and Blaze seemed changed; more cheery and happy, and that was _especially _noticeable on Blaze; the grin she had on her face couldn't be moved, removed or replaced with a frown; it was unbelievable. But, nah, nothing of particular interest; at least Rouge was her normal, "sexy" self, as Shadow thought.

"Well, we are all gathered here to talk about Someone very much special to me, Amy, Sonic, Knuckles and Blaze," Tails started, and Shadow already knew where this was going.

"Don't tell me this is an _evangelization_ picnic," He interrupted. He felt the tension rise up when he blurted out this simple phrase.

"Yes, Shadow, I hope you don't—"

"WHAT did I tell you, Tails?" He blurted out. Tails' eyes widened and a small tear built in his eye.

"If you could just listen—"

"Amy, don't get yourself involved. That's it, I'm leaving, I don't want to hear any of this," Shadow stood up, grabbed a cinnamon roll from the basket, and darted out furiously.

"SHADOW, come back!" Amy, Sonic, Knuckles and Tails shouted simultaneously, but he was so furious that he did not hear them at all.

"Shadow…" Sonic whispered softly.

Tails started to softly whimper, and he was quickly hugged by the surrounding group. Rouge and Espio smiled softly at him and allowed him to continue.

"Well… I, ah… I just wanted… I just wanted you guys to know how much God makes me happy," Tails said between tears, "and I just want Him to make you guys happy as well; He will give you a _real purpose; _but… I, ah… I just want you guys to know who He really is," Tails burst into tears, which made Rouge shed a tear also.

"I want you guys to know that He is not a myth, like I previously thought," Tails cleaned his tears and made a broken sigh, "I just want you guys to be happy; to experiment true bliss."

Later that day Rouge and Espio gave their hearts to the Lord truly; but the minds of the foursome of Amy, Knuckles, Sonic and Tails could not move away from Shadow…

He was a tough nut to crack open.

"This is UNBELIEVABLE!" Shadow yelled furiously at the top of his lungs while driving his car rather fast than usual. He was blinded with fury and he didn't pay attention to his surroundings.

"God! GOD! There IS no God! It is a MYTH! A RELIGION! Since it's a FAIRY TALE, and hasn't been proven yet, it's FAKE! FAKE!" he punched his steering wheel, making his Chevy Cobalt honk its horn. His eyes were bloodshot and he felt that his world was spinning.

_60mph._

"Oh, let me _try!_ God, if you're oh-so-real, why won't I _die _right now, send me to hell for all I care! After all, I'm a sinner and you hate my guts. Come on, _DO IT_!" he shouted at the heavens.

_80mph._

"Yeah, probably I will end up being eaten by Satan and his demons! God, you're a MYTH! If you're real then, where were you when I _needed _You the most!"

_95m—_

_Crash._

Everything was in slow motion.

His car swirled in the air three times.

His eyes closed slowly.

He felt nauseous.

The car fell over the short bridge.

It landed upside-down.

And it all went black.

**Hope you guys like it so far. :] Read and review, please. :D**

**3**

**Nam**


	2. Chapter 2: Cold water

**Hello guys! It's me again. [Duh.] I feel SO inspired with this story right now, that I typed up the second chapter in a matter of TWO hours! That's a first! I've prayed all this time for the Lord to keep me inspired! (And keep those writing juices in my brain pumped!) It's working. So, sorry if I update either daily or in the same day. XD I ish motivated. Thanks for everything! Well, here goes chapter 2.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the SEGA characters mentioned in my story. I only own my own fan characters.**

**Enjoy.**

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><p><em>Swoosh.<em>

_Swoosh._

_Kawk! Kawk!_

_Swoosh._

Shadow's whole body trembled with weakness and from a massive headache. His ears moved faintly at the different sounds. His hands and body felt soft, tiny grains that appeared to be trillions in number… He was lying down on sand…

Sand.

_SAND_!

Shadow jumped on his feet at lightning speed, but quickly lost balance as he fell on his bottom. He blinked repeatedly so that his crimson eyes could adjust to the bright sun and clear skies. He used his left arm to cover his face from the heat as he tried to stand up. He was in a beach, and apparently, he was alone. He still stumbled a little bit in his step, but he managed to walk a little under a huge palm tree that provided some shade from the heat. When his vision finally cleared up, he saw the crystal clear waters and the white sand that overlapped his toes.

He was atrociously confused.

"Where in the world am I?" he asked to himself as he leaned against the palm tree.

But before he could at least admire the beauty of the panorama, two dark red, clawed hands appeared from under the sand and grabbed his ankles.

_Hard._

"WHAT THE—"

He was pulled down some sort of an invisible tunnel that was under the beach and sand, making him swallow some sand in the process.

"WHAT THE… AGRH… WHO… WHAT—AGH!" Shadow could not finish his supposed question because the creature was holding him way too hard, he was going down way too fast, and this was _way too confusing_ for the ebony hedgehog.

"SHUT UP!" the creature screeched, making Shadow cover his ears in pure fear.

_Fear. _

This was the first time Shadow felt _afraid. _

Hopeless.

_Alone._

Suddenly, as he went down the pitch black tunnel, the day's previous happenings started to replay like a horror movie in front of his eyes.

He saw Tails' sad eyes as Shadow yelled at him.

He saw Amy's intentions for him to listen.

He saw how everyone screamed his name.

He heard them.

He heard them preach for him at the park.

He heard them cry to their God for his safety.

Oh, he heard everything alright.

_Make it stop._

* * *

><p>Red and blue lights turned on and off everywhere in different locations. The police and the ambulance were quick on the place on the events, and soon enough called the gang to tell them the bad news. As fast as lightning, Sonic was the first one to be there as expected. When he arrived, his mouth dropped. He felt <em>weak, <em>and a sudden punch to the face of sorrow entered his system. He knelt down and yelled Shadow's name in anguish and dropped his head on his hands. Tails arrived shortly after Sonic and froze in shock. The car…

The car was _completely devastated._

It was upside-down and you could barely tell it was a car. It looked like one of those crumbled up pieces of metal you usually see in junkyards. This seemed like a nasty dream.

_A nightmare._

Tails ran towards the car but the police blocked him from doing so. It was there when he entered in pure hysteria.

"SHADOW! SHADOW! NO!" he repeatedly screamed, trying to pass the blocking arms of the police men.

"You CANNOT pass, young fox!" the police ordered.

Amy, Knuckles, Blaze, Rouge and Espio arrived quickly enough for them to see what happened.

"S…SHADOW!" Amy ran towards Sonic and they both cried in each other's shoulders uncontrollably.

"YOU HAVE TO LET ME PASS! PLEASE, LET ME—_umph!" _The police pushed Tails away and he fell to the floor with a loud thud.

"You _cannot _pass until he is taken out of that car! His entire body is practically stuck under that car, and if you want to see him you have to wait 'til we get him out!" the police man ordered.

Out of the ambulance a silver hedgehog came out with his quills in a fan-like fashion in his forehead, and with two unmistakable golden eyes that looked at the scene with immense sadness. He had a doctor uniform and ordered a few nurses to prepare to get him stabilized once inside the ambulance.

"Silver!" Sonic screamed and ran towards his once-enemy-now-friend hedgehog.

"Silver, can you believe this?" Blaze sobbed and threw herself at Silver, who immediately grabbed her and hugged her, never intending to let go.

"I… ah, I know… I can't quite believe this myself, guys…" Silver said between tears as he grabbed both Sonic and Blaze in each of his arms. Tails quickly flew towards Silver, motioning the rest of the group with him.

"Silver, please, let us know when Shadow gets better or at least reaches the hospital," Tails pleaded as he cried again.

"I will, and I promise to take care of him until he opens his eyes." Silver affirmed sternly.

After what seemed _hours _the police managed to get Shadow's lifeless body out. He was entirely covered in blood and he had a broken arm. Half of his left ear was torn off and he had a huge scar on his chest that was visible across his chest fur. Some men grabbed him and put him carefully inside the ambulance, and Silver quickly checked if Shadow still was alive.

_Thump._

_Thump._

"HE HAS PULSE!"

* * *

><p>On a split second, Shadow's entire body was thrown against the floor. He felt his entire body shake with pure pain; he even <em>felt <em>something rupture inside of him. But he didn't care; something wasn't right here.

He couldn't see _anything_; he couldjust smell a _putrid _odor of like ten thousand dead men rotting at the same time.

He stood up and as quickly as he did that he was pushed down again and he fell face-first on the hot, dry floor. He tried to stand up but all he could do was roll to his right and face whoever—or _what_ever—had pushed him. When he opened his eyes, he screamed back in horror.

A huge creature of like ten feet tall was face to face with him. He had strong arms, long fingers with impressively gross claws that were curved horribly; its eyes were beaming red, his body was a pale shade of brown; his face was like a deformed bear, but it had no nose; it was like a bear skull with segments of fur and segments of bone. He had a third eye coming from the upper-left part of his forehead, and his teeth were like saber. The creature laughed, mocking the new victim that was in front of him.

"Here, I have a little gift for you, _Shadow." _The creature smirked evilly.

It grabbed something from behind it and grabbed Shadow by the neck, lifting him in mid-air. It was a dirty plaque. With full force the creature thrusted it against Shadow's chest, making him scream in agony. The plaque incrusted itself in his chest, and the creature wrote something on it with his claw.

_Atheism._

He then snickered with the most evil laugh Shadow has ever heard in his life.

The creature threw him to a cage with all his might and closed it, and locked it with a key. The cage was rusty and it had a plaque with some crooked numbers on them. Shadow crawled to a corner of the cage and shuddered.

He felt _alone._

He felt _scared._

And for the first time in his life…

_He cried._

* * *

><p>It had been a heart-breaking day for Knuckles and the crew, but he took it the hardest, even if he didn't show any emotions… Just, shock. He could not believe an Almighty God could allow this. He cried silently in his home backyard, looking up at the sky. He could not <em>believe <em>that one of the gang's now-closest friend, Shadow, had been through this.

_But he did deny God after all…_

But, still. He did not deserve this.

_No one deserves this._

This was too much for him. The red echidna sat down on his favorite backyard chair and placed his hands on his forehead, letting a small stream of tears flow freely throughout his fur and landed on the green grass.

"Why?" he asked.

"Why, God? Please, Lord, I need answers. We need You to tell us why did You allow this… Please… P-please…" Knuckles pleaded, but his prayer was soon interrupted by a sudden noise.

_Coo-coo._

Knuckles directed his sight to his front and he could not believe his eyes.

"**Knuckles."**

Knuckles jumped back so hard that he fell down from his chair.

"**Knuckles."**

He stood up but he fell down again; a white dove with beaming orange eyes, glowing body and beautiful features stood in front of him.

"**Don't be afraid," **said the dove, "**be still; I AM, Knuckles."**

Knuckles stood up and an unexplainable peace wrapped his mind and his heartbeat slowed down. He stepped towards the Dove that was standing on top of his favorite fountain.

"Holy Spirit… Thank You for being here… I need You," said Knuckles as tears formed in his purple eyes, "I just don't understand."

"**Shadow is alive, Knuckles. Since he does not believe in Me, he has to believe through real experience," **replied the white Dove as it bobbed its head.

"But, Lord… his body… he seemed lifeless," Knuckles replied remembering the whole scenario, "he looked dead; but I will not question You. Let your will be done."

The Dove nodded and flew to his shoulder.

"**Knuckles, I would never let anything bad happen to someone unless it is for a reason," **the Dove nuzzled against Knuckles' dreadlocks as He finished, **"I just need you guys to put your trust completely in Me. Even if Shadow is passing through strong and life-changing experiences, I will not abandon him. Now, go to rest and tell your friends."**

"Yes, Lord, but—"

But when Knuckles was going to finish his question, the Holy Spirit was no longer to be found.

But Knuckles still felt He was there.

* * *

><p>A few days had passed and the entire crew had received the good news that God had told to Knuckles with cheers, hugs and tears, and they decided to go visit Shadow to see how he had been doing. Each and one of them had bought a gift for Shadow and for Silver, because he had been taking a great care of Shadow for the past few days. After a short walk, Sonic, Amy, Tails, Knuckles, Espio, Blaze and Rouge found themselves in Shadow's room, staring blankly at his lifeless body connected to tubes and a respiratory tube emerged from his trachea.<p>

"H-he looks… _broken," _Amy said, trying to hold back the tears.

"He is, actually," Silver entered the room and placed his right hand on Amy's shoulder, "he has five broken bones in total in all his body; both of his arms have either critical or small fractures; his left leg and to complete that, he has two broken ribs."

"Ouch…" Tails interjected softly.

"But," Silver's tone became a worrying low-tone that he only used when he was depressed, "he's… he's in a permanent coma, and if he does wake up, he may suffer _permanent, untreatable _brain damage."

_Silence._

Only that was heard.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, at least Shadow is alive!<br>And sorry if I seemed cruel with Shadow when he is in Hell, but it is part of the story plot. D:  
>Hope you liked it guys! Read and review, please!<br>God bless!  
>-Nameria<strong>


	3. Chapter 3: The Rescue

**Hello people of earth and beyond! It is me again. Firstly I'd like to thank the reviews I've gotten so far! I'd like to inform that this story is based on a real happening that occurred to one of my sisters in faith, but I've added the atheism and the hell part. (: If you have any questions about the story feel free to comment or leave me a PM.**

**Disclaimer: I disclaim.**

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><p>It had been just minutes for Shadow, but in reality he had been in this horrible place for four days. He was awfully hungry, thirsty, scared and burned. He had been chained inside his cage by some foul creature earlier in the day and he was left alone. Sometimes a few worms came by his cage, and they seemed to be covered in flames, but they did not get consumed. Shadow watched in disgust as he hoped that the worms would not see his hidden cage, creating horrid images in his imagination that terrified his soul deeply. As he looked to his left, he saw a familiar face being <em>devoured <em>by the worms he saw earlier. A chill entered Shadow's spine and left all of his ebony fur standing at this sight.

"L—LEAVE ME! ACK!" cried the voice.

That voice.

It… it was _so _familiar.

"PLEASE… PLEASE stop this… Please… _stop… stop…"_

It was Eggman.

He had passed away a few weeks ago before all of this happened. Shadow knew that he had been evil in his entire life, so it wasn't a surprise to see him here.

"PLEASE! I'll do ANYTHING!" Eggman cried to the top of his lungs as the worms ate his flesh. There were at least sixty of them all over him, and they were _huge._

"EGGMAN!" Shadow screamed and Eggman tried to run towards Shadow, only to be involved in more worms and fire covered the scene, making Shadow grit his teeth in pain.

But before Shadow could think of anything, his cage abruptly opened and a loud laugh was heard. Shadow's eyes opened widely and his pupils withdrew in fear; the creature in front of him was _horrible, _worst than the first one. It was about eight feet tall and his color was of a sickening green; he had four eyes and a wide head. His nose was lion-like and crooked to the left side; he had small ears misplaced in each part of his head. He had strong human-like arms that would make any weight-lifter turn green with envy. His skin was scaled and his lower lip dangled like a grizzly bear's lip. His torso was strong and the rest of his body was like a snake's. His teeth were deformed and yellow and his saliva was toxic. He walked dragging his feetless body with his powerful arms.

He grabbed Shadow and unlocked the chains, and took him harshly by his left arm and they began to walk.

"W—where are you taking me?" Shadow questioned the demon.

"Oh, _drat_—you moronic creatures SPEAK more than you _walk. _MOVE!" the demonic creature pushed Shadow making him stumble with his feet; he was furious, but decided to hold his tongue and keep walking.

Shortly after, they arrived to a secluded location inside of what seemed a cave. The stalagmites dripped a gooey acid instead of water. At the end there was some sort of screen, although rather hard to see from the distance, it was evident it was there. The creature grabbed Shadow firmly by the shoulders and purposely scratched him, making Shadow squint in pain.

"Now, sit down… and enjoy the show," the demon laughed and remained behind Shadow.

_The movie started quickly._

_A scene with him, Tails and Amy played. They were walking and Tails and Amy were laughing about something. This was three years ago. _

"_Hey, Shadow, we have a great idea!" Amy smiled swaying her curled short hair flirtatiously to Shadow._

"_Do tell," Shadow kindly replied._

"_Let's go to church this Sunday!" Tails and Amy exclaimed at the same time._

_Shadow stood quiet and stopped walking, threw a death glare at the two friends, and walked away._

"Please, make it stop…!" Shadow exclaimed, not fighting with the tears. He stood up like a lightning about to leave, but the creature grabbed him, pushed him down in a kneeling position, grabbed his eyes with his fingers and pulled them open, _forcing _Shadow to watch in horror. The creature just hurled and made disgusting sounds at the mention of anything Godly, but it was his job that he had to fulfill.

_Shadow and Amy are walking in the mall and Shadow sits down quickly in a mall bench, and Amy quickly follows. Amy pleads him to let her have his iPhone for a second. He does without even thinking, and Amy seems happy and downloads an app. When she was finished, she started reading the Bible in his iPhone. Shadow's heart wanted to explode as he grabbed his iPhone from her grip, having Amy burst into tears._

"_Shadow, I was going to delete it, I just wanted to read a verse for Bible study tonight!" she cried horrified at Shadow's reaction._

"Do NOT download that LIE into MY iPod!" Shadow bolted off walking, leaving Amy with tears and a broken heart.

"Please, make it stop, make it _stop, _this is _torture,"_ Shadow cried as the creature lowered its massive head next to the hog's ear and whispered,

"You don't even _know _the meaning of that word."

_He saw the picnic he had gone a few days ago._

Oh, no.

_He saw Tails crying after he left._

Make… make it stop.

_He saw him defying God in his car._

Please…

_He saw a white SUV crash face-to-face with his car._

Ah… please… stop…

_His car spun in the air three times._

He could not close his eyes. Tears beamed out like a wild river.

_He saw a Man._

_He saw a cross._

_He saw a Man in a cross._

_He heard His voice._

Oh, how he wished he could hear it…

One more time.

* * *

><p>Shadow's progress was still slow. He stood lifeless, immobile in his bed, letting the tube breathe for him. He looked so fragile; unlike the Shadow you used to see, quiet, doing his own business. He looked weak; it was almost unbelievable that the Ultimate Life-form could get into this type of situation, even more, to this <em>state. <em>Of all of them, Amy, Tails, Knuckles were the ones who visited Shadow the most. They were the ones who always went to his room, made small services and prayed next to Shadow's frozen body. They could even barely see his chest rising and falling through the sheets.

Day after day they visited him without skipping one moment; Sonic and the rest of them visited Shadow when they could be freed of their daily duties. But they also never failed to show at least three times a week.

Silver cared diligently for his patient and friend daily, going to Shadow's room many times a day to check his progress, and when he couldn't go, he sent a nurse to check up on him. He did not want to see his friend perish without salvation. Even more—he did not want to see Shadow have the same ending as his father…

_Flashbacks of a thirteen year old Silver go back through his head; a loud crash and his father was sent flying through the window out of his white Toyota Corolla. His father was awfully drunk that night. His father entered in a coma, and later passed away, Silver sleeping in his immobile arms…_

"N-No, Shadow… I will _not _let this happen to me again. You _will survive!" _Silver looked at Shadow's papers that indicated the worst news he had ever read.

_Permanent brain damage: Positive  
>Status: Untreatable.<em>

"NO!" he threw away the papers and they softly flew back and forth until they reached the ground. Silver's vision blurred heavily and he started to wreck his entire office.

"No, NO, NO! God… GOD! Where ARE YOU?" Silver paced back and forth, grabbing a chair and threw it wildly against the ground, making the chair bounce up a little and then continued its prolonged vibration.

"_WHY, God?_ God! First my dad, and now Shadow? God, why are you so _unjust?_" Silver grabbed a decorative plant he had in his office and threw it with full force against the wall, making the base break in a million pieces.

"YOU promised… IN _YOUR_ BIBLE… That nothing bad would ever happen to us!" Silver kicked his desk and it jumped upwards in its response. "You _promised, _and—""**ENOUGH!"**

A loud voice interrupted Silver in his tantrum.

"What the!"

"**BE QUIET."**

Silver's office trembled at the loud voice that entered his room. He fell back against his desk and shook in fear. Some nurses outside stopped quickly and looked at the shattered room and Silver falling, but they kept walking.

"**Now be quiet and **_**listen**_**."**

Silver looked around in his room to find where that voice was coming from.

"**Is my way unjust? Do I really have the fault of **_**your **_**father leaving this earth, or did he **_**decide **_**to drink that night and **_**drive drunk? **_**"**

Silver's eyes filled with tears.

"**Am I guilty of mankind's decisions? Am I, Silver? Do I have the fault when someone **_**denies and defies **_**me? It's their decision, and since I gave my creation a free will, I have to **_**respect **_**it!"**

Silver curled in fetal position as he stared blankly at the empty space.

"**Have you forgotten about your Creator, and have you forgotten that I will not permit anything unless it is for a reason? Or have you succumbed more to your scientific mind and forgot that it was **_**I **_**who gave you it in the first place?"**

He could not respond anymore.

"**Must you question me? Remember I am wise, I AM love… but I also teach life-changing lessons when needed to. Shadow needed an encounter desperately. He will soon understand the answer of his question. I just need you and all of your friends to trust in Me, your Fortress, and your Deliverer."**

Silver stood up and he felt a Man embrace him tenderly. Silver cried desperately, letting it all out. All his frustrations, all his anger, and his sadness were coming out in form of tears. He had forgotten how relieving this felt…

"God, I am sorry… I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" he repeated as he sobbed.

"**I love you, Silver. And you have been forgiven. Now go, take care of Shadow, his friends are in his room. Join them in the prayer service; I'll be there with them."**

"I love you too, God…"

"**I know."**

With that, he heard the Voice no more.

* * *

><p>Amy, Tails and Knuckles gathered around Shadow's bed and held hands, and Amy began her prayer.<p>

"Lord, we come here to You today to give You thanks for keeping Shadow alive. Whatever he is passing through right now, I know that You're with him, because You shall never let us go. Please, keep Shadow in the palm of Your hand, and keep us calm in the process," Amy's voice shattered when she spoke, "because I would be _devastated _to see him go… And… God, he needs You… We need You," Amy closed her hands tightly around Knuckles' and Tails' hands. She began to cry and the two boys opened their eyes and looked at Amy with sad smiles. They proceeded to envelop Amy in a group hug and she began to cry on Knuckles shoulder. She then said between sobs,

"…but I know that You're keeping him safe. I trust You. I pray to You in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen."

Later that day Amy arrived to her humble home, still rather sad about the day's happenings. Her mind troubled her and she knelt down next to her bed and collapsed in sadness.

"Lord, I need to rest… It's like I feel that all of my energy has been sucked out… God, you know how I feel about all this, about _him, _but I won't take any step further. I need rest; I need rest, Lord… I'm so tired…"

After she undressed and put on her pajamas, she fell asleep in a matter of minutes.

_Suddenly she appeared on a huge valley with soft, long grass that danced with the wind. The heavens were bright and had an intense glare of blue that announced the Glory of God; the sun was at its highest peak and the wind made everything even more peaceful, even making Amy's white, long dress sway with it like dancing. Billions of multi-colored flowers, both big and small, adorned the valley perfectly. A few birds appeared over the horizon and made their classic sounds. Amy admired all of this, but as she turned to her left, she saw a huge oak tree with a strong trunk and differently-shaded green leaves. Amy gasped in astonishment, since the panorama she was observing took her breath away. She felt an incredible peace embrace her and she felt happy. She ran playfully until she reached the tree, sat on a huge root that came out of the ground, and closed her eyes. She spent singing, relaxing and drifted away in peaceful slumber until Amy woke up…_

A tear fell from her eyes.

It was 3:06 AM.

She smiled.

She felt _peace._

* * *

><p>Shadow was still being tortured, and after a few more movies of his life, it came to a last one.<p>

_A scene of a Man bowing down in pain and suffering invaded Shadow's thoughts. _

_A Roman soldier grabbed something long, which appeared to be a whipping weapon; it had a small, pointy iron ball on the end. _

_The Roman soldier lifted his arm and then hit the Man with full force, making Him wince in pain._

_Blood, tears, silence._

_The Man did not speak a word._

"Please…" Shadow could not do this anymore. He grabbed the monster's hands and tried to remove its fingers from his eyes, but it was nearly impossible.

"Well, _buddy, _because you neglected Him, you're now here. I hope you enjoy your stay, I know I—AGH!"

Another demon bumped with the creature, making Shadow open his eyes in awe.

"ARGH, you _worthless _excuse for a _demon!" _the other demon exclaimed. "It's time for the party!"

"Party?"

"Oh yes, the party," the first monster grinned maliciously, "Shadow, follow me."

After a few steps, _millions _of other humans and Mobians gathered in a group in the center. Shadow was unsure of what was about to happen, but he being in Hell, it can't be anything good.

"What's going on?" he asked a horse who was next to him.

"It is the PARTY! Run, run while you can…" the horse desperately tried to find a hiding spot but it was no use. His plaque said "_Fornication."_

"The party? But what happens in the—" Shadow's words, breath and thoughts escaped him when he saw a large, more like a _humongous _wall of flames fall from the roof to the group of people. The demons laughed at their supposed party and they exchanged high-fives and jokes. Shadow ran away from everything as fast as he could, but the flames seemed to follow him. Upon encountering a wall that blocked his only way out, he knelt down in lighting speed and yelled to the top of his lungs…

"GOD, I'M SORRY! HAVE _MERCY OF ME. PLEASE, FORGIVE ME!"_

_AAAH!_

What the…?

_"IT'S HIM! IT'S JEHOVAH! __DON'T SAY THAT NAME! __RUN! RUN! HIDE, WE CAN'T BE HERE WHEN HE'S AROUND! __WHY IS HE EVEN HERE? __Dude, just run! Oh, Satan won't be happy…"_

Shadow opened his eyes as he heard the many crooked voices to see the brightest light hit the dark abyss in a flash, and a strong earthquake began to shake up Hell. It was so strong that the people inside the place of torture fell on their bottoms while they ran in desperation. Out of thin air, a huge hand came inside from the light and grabbed Shadow, making the plaque immediately fall down from his chest and return to its residence in Hell. Shadow could not see anything but light, and fell the temperature of his body and surroundings develop into a comfortable one he could manage. He saw his Savior's hand, and it had a huge hole on it. He closed his eyes and felt true peace.

_Swoosh._

_Swoosh._

_Kawk! Kawk!_

_Swoosh._

"_**Shadow."**_

* * *

><p><strong>Woah, eight pages! To God be all the glory.<strong>

**Hope you likeee.  
>NamNam<strong>


	4. Chapter 4: Redemption

**HELLO GUYS! I'm sorry I haven't updated, but life's been hectic these days. But thankfully everything is back to normal. Also, I'd like to tell you guys to go visit my profile and read the part that speaks about this story. Also, the part about Amy's dream is a dream I had myself.**

**Disclaimer: I think it is pretty obvious that I do not own Sonic.**

* * *

><p>Shadow's eyes opened abruptly at the recognition of the place he was in. It was the beach from where the two hands grabbed him, and where his nightmares began to take place. He stood up desperately, and gasped for air as he leaned his hands on his knees. He looked at the floor and saw the white sand, but when he kept going up, he saw a Dove, with white, glistening feathers, orange, fiery eyes, and it could speak.<p>

"Who… Who are You?" Shadow asked with almost no energy; he felt his only bits of energy he had available had been sucked out earlier.

"**I AM, Shadow."**

Shadow stood quiet at the sudden expression. He scratched his head and sat down Indian style on the white, soft sand.

"You are who?" Shadow asked confused.

"**I am the Holy Spirit, your peace in the storm, your light in the dark, your eyes when you can't see,"**

Shadow moved himself closer to the Dove, who was peacefully sitting in front of him, looking at him with eyes that penetrated his _soul_, and his very _existence_.

"Nice meeting You… Did you know that I was in Hell a few seconds ago, and that a huge hand rescued me when I was about to get consumed by fire?" Shadow threw questions a million a minute. The Dove chuckled and kept speaking without moving its beak.

"**There is no place where man can hide from me. If they go to the deepest part of the sea, I will be there; if they go to the darkest abyss in the world, I will be there. No one can hide from me. So I did know, Shadow; I was with you the whole time."**

"Wait, so you knew I was there? If so, why did I have to go there?" Shadow stood up.

"**Shadow, before this happened, what did you believe in?"**

"Nothing. I thought nothing of this existed. I thought we were here because of random explosions, and crazy theories. I believed that there was nothing else but us…"

"**And now, what do you believe in?"**

"I believe that there is a pretty darn scary place down there. I… I don't want to… I never want to place a _finger _in that place of torment," Shadow said as he felt goose bumps as he spoke. Memories of the plaque, the different demons he saw, the movie, Eggman, the horse… everything came back as Shadow dropped on his knees and then fell down face-first.

"I do not want to go there again, I do not want… I…"

Here comes that feeling again.

_Tears._

"**You will not go there, Shadow. In fact, why don't we go somewhere special, and talk about a great deal?"**

Shadow lifted his head and stared at the Dove. He seemed like a nice person to talk to.

"**Come, Shadow."**

He stood up and the Dove flew up to his shoulder. He made a small smile and started walking, then stopping, and stating an obvious question.

"Uh… where are we going to go now?"

"**Walk on the water."**

"_WHAT?"_

Shadow stared at the Dove with a shocked expression.

"**Trust Me."**

Shadow gulped and started walking towards the water, and expected his shoes to get wet. On the contrary, he began walking on top of the water just like if he were walking in the sand, or in his home. He had his eyes opened widely and the Dove took off in flight.

"HEY! WAIT! Don't leave!"

"**Just keep your eyes on Me, and you will not sink."**

Shadow nodded as he kept walking, always staring at the Dove. The sea was calm and the sun was still at its highest peak. The clouds were puffy and scarce, and the wind blew against his quills. But as soon as he was walking on the sea, he felt something that he bumped on. The dove kept flying up, so he decided to lift his leg, as if he were climbing up a stair. He then found himself going up in mid air, but he felt the stairs below his feet. He kept going up and so did the Dove, getting higher each passing second. After minutes of silent walking towards the heaven, he reached outer space.

He thought he was going to die from lack of oxygen, but instead he was perfectly normal.

"**From this part now, you **_**must **_**keep your eyes on Me. Not to the right, nor to the left. Got it?"**

Shadow nodded and kept walking up. The constellations were amazing from where he was standing; he saw galaxies, trillions and trillions of stars; it was beautiful. But when he was admiring the beauty, and staring at the dove at the same time, he felt a sudden _whoosh _and a _laugh _that seemed to descend to Earth. Shadow wanted to look, but he kept staring at the Dove, keeping his promise (something he was good at.) After a few seconds, another _whoosh _and a _screeching _sound, similar to the ones in Hell, passed his ear. He dared not to look back as his feet kept going up the invisible stairs. After a few minutes of walking, he saw clouds on the end of the invisible stairs; he saw like a door to somewhere, adorned with pearls, diamonds, rubies, and many other precious stones.

"What _is _that?"

"**Home,"**

They stood in front of the huge golden door and it opened, showing what held inside. He heard millions of angelical voices singing perfectly in-tune with many harmonious instruments; he saw kids playing in the immense paradise; he saw hills, flowers both existent and nonexistent in Earth; he saw strong trees with delicate flowers; he saw all kinds of animals; he saw tall, strong beings which had wings as long as their bodies. He saw a long carpet that guided you to some place. He saw the sky, it was bright and lively but it had no sun. It was simply _beautiful, unexplainable; _far too perfect for the accurate description with words.

It was all he had been searching for.

"I love this place…"

The Dove chuckled and flew on top of Shadow's shoulder and looked lovingly at Shadow. Shadow offered his finger and the Dove walked on it, making Shadow look at Him face to face.

"**Shadow, I want you to be here for eternity after your departure from Earth. I never want to see you **_**suffer **_**again like that in Hell, and much worse, suffer for all eternity."**

"I don't want to go through that twice!" Shadow trembled and looked sad for a brief moment.

"**So, I want you to consider a great deal; let Me live in your heart, and no matter what happens, I will never leave you. All things will work out with a good purpose; your burdens will be lifted. Each time you fall, I will be there to pick you up. No matter what you do, I'll forgive; I want to be your Fortress, I want to be there when you need Me the most," **the Dove flew to the ground and looked behind Shadow, making him turn around and see.

He saw a Man.

Wait… was it _the _Man?

The Man that he saw in the cross?

He had beautiful brown hair that waved to shoulder length, a small beard, white clothes and a red cloth belt; His eyes were of a beautiful, fiery, orange-red color that penetrated even the most dreaded man's soul; his arms, legs and body were very strong. His hands and feet had huge holes in them, like if they were nailed a long time ago. He had a crown that said _King of Kings _and He had a smile that Shadow will never forget.

"**I want to be your Savior, Shadow the Hedgehog."**

The Dove flew to the Man's shoulder and they both looked at Shadow with a loving stare that got deep inside of Shadow's eyes.

"Who are you? I-I saw You in a vision I had in Hell… You… You were in a cross… _Dying… _How are you here?" Shadow asked as he felt his knees shook in this Man's presence.

"**I am Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, the Prince of Peace. My Father sent me to Earth as a sacrifice for mankind, for it needed a Savior from its sins. But I am not dead, I am alive, and I will return to Earth to call my children home."**

Shadow's eyes filled with tears.

"**You have no idea how much time I've been waiting for you, Shadow. You have no idea how much I love you. You don't have even a small picture in your mind that could describe what this moment means to Me and everyone here in heaven."**

Jesus stretched his hand to Shadow, and Shadow grabbed it weakly, as he felt he was fading.

"Jesus… Please, forgive me… I've been so blind all this time. I thought that my promise to Maria and Amy was my only purpose, and that purpose had been completed. I'm sorry, I'm… I'm so, so sorry… I cannot begin to express how sorry I am… I repent; I want to start a new, Lord. But I do not want to do anything without You by my side,"

Shadow fell to his knees and cried for the third time in his life. But this time it felt _different. _The last two times were of agony and _fear_, and those two feelings were like acid on his veins. But this time, it was _acknowledgement, understanding _and _joy;_ not only because this place and these People were a million times better than Hell, but because he knew he had found what he always searched for since his conception; a _purpose._

"**You have been forgiven, and do not worry; I will never leave you alone. I promise, and my promises are unbreakable. And, Shadow?"**

"Yes, Lord?" asked Shadow curiously.

"**I have a surprise for you."**

Jesus smiled and moved a little to the left and a young girl came to his sight. She was blonde with big, ocean blue eyes, white skin and a beautiful face.

Wait.

No, it _can't _be.

Was this a joke?

A _dream?_

…_Maria?_

* * *

><p>It had been a week now, and progress was nowhere to be seen or found in Shadow's body. Silver was still being patient and taking care of Shadow's needs. He had changed his mind since his encounter with God, attending church more and he began to join Sonic's weekly Bible studies every Friday in Shadow's room. He had more knowledge of the Bible since then, and was more content with himself.<p>

Sonic had been an eager fellow, always being happy and the positive one of the group. He never let anything bring him down before, and now in God's side, what _would _or _could _bring him down? Nothing!

One early morning, around 3:09 AM, Sonic felt uneasy and began to toss and turn in his bed.

"Argh… What's wrong…?"

"**Sonic, wake up,"**

Sonic opened his eyes widely at the audible voice he heard. He sat up in his bed quickly and felt his heart race in his chest.

"Lord, is that You? If so, here I am,"

"**Yes, Sonic, I AM. I need you to do something urgent," **the Lord spoke with a tone of voice that made Sonic know this was of top priority.

"What is it, Lord? You tell, I do!"

"**I called you because of your amazingly fast speed. Run as fast as you can to Scarlet Hills, and start preaching out loud in the small forest on top of them. Now, go!"**

Sonic was a little confused, but he didn't question the Lord. He got off from bed and put on his shoes, grabbed his Bible and darted out his front door. His destination was a little far, so he ran faster than sound, creating a sonic boom that could be heard miles away. It was in there where a shadowy creature in a building top stared at the blue beam of light in the distance. His features were those of a green hawk, with piercing green eyes. He frowned at this unlikely sight and clenched a fist.

"Sonic… I've been waiting for you."

With that, the bird grabbed some sort of air-travelling equipment and took off in flight.

* * *

><p>"M… M-Maria…?" Shadow mumbled in disbelief.<p>

"Shadow!"

"Maria!"

They both ran towards each other and embraced in a long, tight, tear-filled hug. Shadow played with Maria's hair as he hugged her, shaking in pure delight. The girl he had always loved like a sister was here in his arms again, and she was so _close _to him, it was almost unreal. But he knew she was really there, for he felt _everything _and he felt happy.

He had finally felt _true happiness._

"Maria, I kept my promise in Earth! I did everything you said, to give myself a chance to be happy, I did everything. You have no idea how much I've missed you, you have no idea… no clue…"

"Shadow, I missed you too… And now I'm happy, because you will see me again for eternity pretty soon."

They both cried and then broke their hug rather hesitantly. Shadow looked up at Jesus and smiled with a small tear in his eye.

"Thank You… This means everything to me right now. I cannot begin to express my gratitude towards You," Shadow walked towards Jesus and hugged Him hard, ending up in more tears. If someone he knew in Earth saw him right now, they would call him a weakling or stupid. But he didn't care. It felt _good. _Jesus chuckled and hugged him tightly, never wanting to let go.

"**I love you, Shadow the Hedgehog,"**

Shadow remained emitting silent sobs on the Lord's chest. He could not explain the _bliss, _the _happiness, _the _joy _that he felt. He felt _complete, _like if he were a puzzle with only a missing piece, and the Lord was the piece that completed him. Maria also joined the hug, and Jesus extended His arm around both.

"**Now, come, Shadow! I want to show you around!"**

Shadow smiled widely and held the Lord's hand tightly and walked next to Him.

If _only_ he had discovered Him before…

* * *

><p>Sonic kept running until he reached Scarlet Hills. When he got to the top, he saw the small forest like the Lord had told him. He slowed down his pace and then stopped to look around. He walked until he reached a small clearing and opened his Bible. He narrowed his eyes because of the dim light and began searching for a text to base his message.<p>

"**Read Matthew 11:28-30," **the Lord ordered.

Sonic quickly searched for the Bible and began reading out loud.

"_Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke on you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and my load is not hard to carry,"_

"The Lord wants you to put all of your problems, situations and past in His hands; God wants to help you with your burdens and lift them; God wants to be the Savior of your life, the One to pick you up when you fall. And no matter what happens, the Lord will never leave you alone, because He promised in His Bible, that He will never forsake us, as the Psalm 94 states: _If I say, "My foot is slipping," your loyal love, O LORD, supports me. _It also says that c_ertainly the LORD does not forsake his people; he does not abandon the nation that belongs to him._"

"I do not know what you're going through, but in only one thing I am certain; the Lord is my Shepherd, and I lack nothing; He will take me to lush pastures, and he leads me to refreshing water. He restores my strength, and leads me down the right paths for the love of His name. Even when I walk through the valley of darkness and death, I will not fear any danger, for the LORD is with me! Everything that you thought about God before is wrong… He is waiting for you!"

Suddenly a bush moved and Sonic's eyes locked on it immediately. He prepared himself for an ambush of some sort, but instead, a Mobian walked out of the bushes. He had a long rope in his hand and he dropped it. It was a light grey wolf with a white muzzle, ice blue eyes, and hedgehog-like quills adorned his head. He had tribal-like markings of the same ice blue of his eyes, and in his forehead he had a tattoo that said "207." He walked towards Sonic and his eyes were bloodshot red because he was apparently crying.

"Is… Is this true, what you speak?"

Sonic's jaw dropped.

"Yes, my friend… What's your name?"

"Silence… Silence the Wolf-hog, as I name myself…"

"My name is Sonic the Hedgehog! What are you doing here this early in the morning?" Sonic asked in curiousness.

"D-dude, I'm tired of everything! I hate myself, I have no job, no money, my girl dumped me after two years married, and my child died of a brain tumor at just three months of life! My parents died four months ago, and my sister has leukemia! M-my life, it's over! It's a disaster; I cannot _live _in this _hell _anymore! I'm sick of everything!" the wolf-hog blurted out in desperation and tears, yelling his lungs out.

Sonic thought what he was about to say for a few seconds, but he got interrupted by the wolf.

"I came here to kill myself; I cannot keep walking in this hell any longer!"

"This is not Hell. What you're living is hard, yes, but it isn't Hell. Hell is much worse, and if you kill yourself, you'll end up there… So that's not an option, Silence. Secondly, did you hear what I said?" Sonic asked.

"Yes," Silence spoke softly, trying to calm down.

"God _loves _you _so much _that He gave his _only Son _for your salvation. God loves you so much that he wants you to be rested and walk over your problems, not get overwhelmed and drown in them,"

"**Hug him, Sonic,"**

Sonic walked towards Silence and hugged him, making Silence cry out loud and landing both on their knees on the ground. Sonic then began crying too, hugging the wolf tightly.

"The Lord is hugging you right now, and He does not want you to take away your life. Just let Him have a chance to be the One to help you through this, because we can do all things through Him, who strengthens us!"

After a while, Silence converted to the Lord, and felt different. The pair walked away from the forest talking about God and His love, unaware of the green shadow that watched their every step.

_And he was not happy about what happened._

* * *

><p><strong>What! Jet is a bad guy?<strong>

**Yeah. XD Enjoy! And thanks for the support, as always. **

**God be glorified for this…**

**-Nameria**


	5. Chapter 5: Awakening

**Hello there faithful readers! Here's chapter five. ShadAmy scenes and references will be present in this chapter and others, just so you guys know it. Also, thank you for all the support, reviews and views this fic has received. I am very thankful, seriously. To God be all the glory! Now, enjoy!**

* * *

><p><em>Laughter.<em>

_Giggles._

Three figures start to appear in the horizon.

_Silence._

_Awe._

_Tears._

The figures walk on top of a long, red carpet, heading to somewhere unknown.

_Questions._

_Answers._

_Understanding._

"**Shadow, Maria; follow Me, I want to show you two something,"**

Shadow felt like a toddler that had found Disneyland or discovered a pirate treasure. He felt like a burden has been lifted, and walking wasn't that tedious now. Breathing wasn't a burden that he sometimes wanted to stop carrying. _Living _wasn't a curse anymore. It was a wrapped gift under a tree in a Christmas morning; it was gift, filled with surprises, that God wanted him to unwrap, to discover its wonderful moments. Shadow was still black, with blood-red markings and eyes. He still had that trademark voice, everything. But his insides was what changed; his _heart _was now beating with true purpose; his _eyes _now saw what God wanted him to see; his _hands _now were used for good, not for vengeance, because he knew that God would take care of his enemies; his _feet _wanted only to walk on His righteous path forevermore; his _soul _wanted to be with Him all eternity.

Shadow had learned a lot since he first arrived to Hell. He discovered that there is indeed punishment for the evildoers; he learned that life can be taken away in a _split second_; that God cannot be _fooled _or _mocked _or even _defied, _because He is a Holy God. He learned that God is not guilty for children dying, being raped or abducted; instead, many times children die in hands of other humans; rapists choose to behave this way and inflict pain in others by their _selfish _mannerisms; people who kidnap are also responsible for their actions. In the hunger issue, in India, God gave them many cows and such animals to end their hunger, but instead, they _worship _their only possible food. Many other situations are based on human actions, and since God gave mankind a free will, He must respect mankind's decisions. But, He does not want mankind to get lost, and if it means taking drastic measures, He will do it. That was Shadow's case, and Shadow did learn his lesson very, _very _well.

As Shadow walked next to Jesus and Maria, he observed that the carpet lead to somewhere inside the castle. The long, red carpet made a series of turns that Shadow observed that Jesus was following, so he did too. After a while, the trio arrived to a place that had the longest dinner table Shadow has ever seen. The table was adorned with a beaming white mantle, and on top of the mantle, a red, smaller mantle sat gracefully. A lot of candles were situated perfectly in the center of the table; many plates that had pure gold writings shone with the candle light. The silverware seemed to be made of pure silver, with gold and bronze adorned handles, and seemed to be very heavy. The napkins were under the silverware; they were pure white with red and gold decorations that combined them with the table perfectly. In front of the plates, crystalline glasses were filled with some sort of dark purple liquid that seemed to be grape juice. The chairs were perfectly aligned; they were golden with red seat cushions, and bronze decorations. The table seemed to have no end; it was gorgeous. Hundreds of angels were rushing over the table, making the final preparations and making sure everything was ready for an event. Shadow looked to the ceiling, and a huge crystal lamp was floating on top of everything, giving the scene a more royal appearance.

"Wow, what is this place?" Shadow asked amazed.

"**This is the area in where Me and My children will have dinner. Shadow, when you go back, tell your friends that the Rapture will take place soon, and that they have to be ready,"**

Shadow looked up at the Lord briefly and nodded. He looked to one of the huge windows and saw a pure white horse and an angel. The angel was supposedly training the horse to bow down. Shadow tilted his head but kept looking at the Lord, Who was still speaking.

Suddenly an angel darted inside the room with a basket and laid it in front of the trio.

"My Lord, another abortion case," the angel said with a very sad tone.

Jesus sighed and crouched down in front of the basket and took the baby out in his arms. He then started to do something awkward with his hands, and in a matter of seconds, a fifteen-year-old boy was standing in front of us. Jesus hugged the boy, kissed him on his head, and the boy darted off laughing.

"**Now, come, Shadow. It's time to go back,"**

Shadow looked at Maria and they both had a tight hug. She then smiled at him and gave him a small kiss on the cheek, and he kissed her forehead.

"I'll be waiting for you, Shadow,"

"I know,"

And with that, Maria ran away and disappeared in the distance.

* * *

><p>The green shadow passed at lightning speed towards Sonic and Silence in the way home. Sonic noticed the sudden green blur and stepped in front of Silence instinctively to protect him from any danger.<p>

"Who are you?" Sonic questioned with authority.

"Do you remember me?" Jet asked wickedly.

"…_Jet_? What are you doing here?" Sonic asked in disbelief.

"Why did you do that to Silence? Y'know, he _is _my boss' prisoner. He was _extremely _disgusted at _you _for taking Silence away from him; that's a big no-no."

Sonic's ears perked at the phrase "my boss."

"Who do you mean by your 'boss'"?

"The one and only Satan, of course—in fact, he has a word to speak with you, Sonic the Hedgehog,"

Out of nowhere, a tall, black man appeared behind a bush. His skin was pale and his eyes were black, showing no irises. His hair was black and combed to perfection; his face was beautiful, but his expression emitted pure hatred and wickedness. He was wearing a completely black tuxedo, black shoes, black socks, black _everything_. He walked towards Jet and landed a hand on top of Jet's shoulder. Jet looked up to him and bowed in respect, making Sonic's stomach twist in disgust.

"Hello, Sonic," the Enemy of God began speaking; his voice sounded like millions of voices diverged into one.

Sonic landed on his knees, and told Silence to do that too. Jet and Lucifer exchanged looks and began laughing out loud for about two minutes. After they caught their breath, the Chief of the Dark began speaking.

"Who gave you permission to sabotage Silence's suicide?"

Sonic remained quiet and Silence did too, praying on their knees.

"_SPEAK_!" Lucifer's eyes got darker each time he yelled.

"You better speak, Sonic,"

_Lord, please, send your angels in our aid…_

"SPEAK, you cursed _blue demon!"_

_Help us in this time of need, Lord. We know you can hear us._

"Don't act like you are deaf, fool!"

_Give us the strength, please… _

"Oh, no… don't say that name!"

_In the name of JESUS CHRIST, YOUR NAME is above ALL OTHER NAMES…_

"SHUT UP!"

_AMEN!_

Sonic opened his eyes; feeling empowered and strengthened by the Lord, prepared for combat. But first, he had to say something he had never said before.

"Satan, I _rebuke _you in the name of Jesus Christ!"

Lucifer's face transformed into that of a dragon-like monster, making Sonic take a step or two backwards in response. He began to make screech-like yells and laughs, and making fun of what Sonic said.

"I WILL NEVER GO, SILENCE IS _MINE_!"

The dragon-head-human-bodied creature jumped towards Silence in an attempt to tackle him, but suddenly, a white, glowing hand stopped the creature in mid-air.

"Silence now belongs to _YAHWEH_!"

A tall angel with semi-transparent wings threw Lucifer to the ground, landing face-first.

"Ah, Michael, long time no see!" Lucifer laughed distortedly.

"Be gone, Satan, in the name of Jesus!" Satan screeched and ran away; his scream could be heard in the distance.

Jet suddenly jumped towards Sonic in an attempted attack, but Sonic dodged it just in time. Jet threw a punch that was supposed to connect with Sonic's lower jaw, but Sonic was able to miss it. Sonic kicked Jet in the chest, making Jet back up and fall down butt-first, but he then stood up and tackled Sonic to the ground. Sonic grabbed his arms and tried to turn him over and succeeded and stood face-to-face with Jet.

"Jet, react!"

"I WILL NEVER!"

Suddenly, Michael ran towards Sonic and Jet and separated them from their quarrel. When they were done breathing heavily, Michael stared at them both and disappeared in thin air, but to everyone's surprise, the Dove appeared flying from the sky and landed in Sonic's shoulder. Jet stared at the Dove and fell to the floor and tried getting away, but the Dove's strong stare made him weak and tremble with fear and guilt.

"**Jet, what has done Lucifer for you that had made you decide to follow him?"**

"I never decided! It was a family tradition! And besides, people in church once turned me down, why would I _bother_ to go back?"

"**The **_**people **_**in church rejected you, not Me, Jet,"**

"You were never there when I needed You! You were never there when my mother died, when I saw my dad do drugs! Where were you when I needed you the most?"

"**I was with you, Jet. You were so blinded by rage and sadness that you never saw Me right next to you, listening to every word, every sigh, every tear, every unfinished sentence that you could never complete… I was there, Jet. I was there,"**

Jet's heart ached with pain.

"But, how can I believe in You? Lucifer has offered me so many things after death, and I made a pact with him that he told me can never be broken!"

"**He lied,"**

"What?"

"**If you decide to walk with Me, that pact will be broken. It will be no more!"**

Jet's heart raced as he stared at the Dove's orange fiery eyes.

"**Jet, can I tell you the three words you most desire to hear?"**

"Yes…?" Jet asked curiously.

"**I love you,"**

Jet stood still.

"**Your deepest desire is to have a real friend, Jet. Your dream is to actually have a family,"**

Jet's eyes closed.

"**Let me be your friend, and let Sonic and friends become your family,"**

_I know I want this._

"**Just give Me a chance, Jet,"**

_But is it really worthwhile?_

"**And I can change your life…"**

_Is it worth everything I have lived for?_

"…**in just a second,"**

_What He was offering me seems good._

Sonic's hand stretched out for me.

"Come, Jet, let's talk about this,"

_Is… is this really the only factor needed in his equation?_

_I love you._

_Love._

_Love…_

_L…_

* * *

><p>Amy entered Shadow's room, this time, alone.<p>

She was dressed with loose grey jeans, a white t-shirt and her hair was all dolled up. She pulled a chair next to Shadow's stiffened body, and leaned against the elevated hospital bed. Her heart ached seeing him in this condition. She never got used to it, and probably never will.

Amy had known Jesus for a little less than three years, when Tails and her invited Shadow to the church. Prior to this, Amy and Shadow had developed a stable friendship, but Amy slowly began to forget about Sonic and focus on Shadow. He respected her and looked at her as a great friend, and so did Amy; but he was oblivious to Amy's indirect flirts and affection. But now, it had been three years since Amy was a Christian, and Shadow became a tough atheist. Things were different now, but nevertheless, she never tried to argue with him. She knew that he would be ready when he would be ready. Amy still felt something for him, but she knew it wasn't time yet.

Now, seeing him in this bed…

It was _horrible_. She hung her head and began crying desperately, making a river of tears stream down her delicate cheeks.

"God, if only you could bring him back… You know how I feel about _him…"_

_Beep._

"Please, Lord, you know how much I _miss him…"_

_Beep._

"How much _we_ miss him…"

_Beep. Beep._

"Lord, I _beg…_"

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

"I love You, Lord. But please, bring him _b-back…"_

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

"NURSE!"

* * *

><p>"<strong>Well, Shadow, I know that your time in heaven was short, but you are ready to go back,"<strong>

"I don't want to go back, but it is your will, Lord. I wish I could stay—"

"_God, if only you could bring him back…"_

"Is that Amy?" Shadow asked.

"**Yes, she is praying for your return. Now, let's go to the hospital, Shadow,"**

"_You know how I feel about him…"_

_Huh? Feel about who? Me?_

"_Please, Lord, you know how much I miss him…"_

"**Here we are, Shadow. Remember everything in your experience, and preach about the Rapture, about your experiences, and about my gift of eternal salvation!"**

"I know, Lord. I love You, and thank You for everything. Now I understand…"

"_How much we miss him…"_

"**I love you too, Shadow! If you need anything, just call Me, and I will answer,"**

"_Lord, I beg…"_

"I know, Lord, I know; see You soon…"

"_I love You, Lord. But please, bring him b-back…"_

I want to open my eyes…

"NURSE!"

* * *

><p><strong>OMG WATZ GOIN ON! A few more chapters and I'm done!<br>Hope you enjoy this chappy.  
>Sorry if not that long. :[ But the message is more important than the length. Quality over quantity, perhaps?<strong>

**Ooh, a little bit of suspense… Hope you guys enjoy.  
>READ AND REVIEW, Please!<br>NAMNAMNAMNAMNAM**


	6. Chapter 6: New Beginnings

**Hello! :3 Sorry for the looong wait! I've been insanely busy with church! In fact, I spent this entire Saturday at church from 8:00am to 10:00pm! *phew!* Remember that being the daughter of the pastors means sacrifice, testimony and example! I've been practically living in church! XD But I don't care, I love it so much~ I'll throw ShadAmy moments and a simple SilvAmy moment; I do not like this pairing as much, but it is the friendship that is part of mah story. :]**

**Here is the next chapter, I apologize for the long wait… I hope it doesn't happen again~**

* * *

><p>"DOCTOR! SILVER!"<p>

_Thump-thump._

"What's wrong, Amy!"

"Shadow's moving his eyes and the beeping thing is going crazy!"

"WHAT?"

_Thump-thump._

"NURSES, go to room 407-B, STAT!"

A sudden scream.

"NURSES, HURRY UP! MOVE IT, MOVE IT, MOVE IT!"

_Crash. _

"Shadow, please, calm down…" Amy ran behind Silver and the nurses, trying to keep up with them.

"Amy, please, wait in the—"

"NO! I want to be there with him! You have no idea how much he means to me! Please, don't do this to me, Silver!"

Silver stopped his running and looked at Amy with compassion. Amy's eyes were getting glassy and tear-filled, making Silver's heart melt in understanding. He nodded and signaled Amy to follow him.

When they arrived to the room, Shadow's eyes were still closed, but moving at the speed of sound. His body was tense and moving up and down violently in his bed, making the bed tremble and shake, emitting metal sounding movement. He was screaming to the top of his lungs, making Silver scared, and terribly confused.

_Wasn't this a permanent coma?_

Shadow began to speak incoherent phrases and words; Amy collapsed to her knees and began to pray out loud, crying uncontrollably, hugging herself tight. Silver grabbed some sort of medicine in his hand, and prepare himself to inject it into Shadow's veins, hoping that this would calm down Shadow. It would not put him to sleep, but only relax him. Silver grabbed firmly one of Shadow's tense arms, and held it down with great force. He injected the medicine quickly and retreated.

He was _atrociously _confused.

People who had been in comatose for around one week or two usually develop slow awakenings. Firstly, moving their eyes; then, saying a word or two, slowly proceeding to moving their appendages; then, sitting up, eventually standing up, and then converting into a full recovery. But Shadow's awakening was sudden, like an explosion you don't expect at all. This could mean serious brain damage and possibly even a longer coma, and this made Silver sick with worry. The nurses stared at Shadow while he calmed down gradually, and Silver kneeled down next to Amy. He laid a hand on her back and stroked it back and forth, hoping to calm her down. After a few minutes, she stopped crying and looked up at Silver, only to cry again and throw herself to Silver's welcoming arms.

"S-S-Silver, I-I-I am t-thankful t-that S-Shadow c-came b-back, but w-will h-he b-be o-okay?" she asked between sobs and tears. Silver's eyes closed and a small stream of tears escaped his grip, making him feel weak for a moment or two.

"Amy, Shadow is awakening, but he is in grave danger. No patient in comatose has ever woken up with these reactions, at least in this hospital. It is extremely dangerous. But I trust God that he will be okay, He promised us that Shadow will wake up soon to be with us," Silver hugged Amy tight, and Amy felt like she had just eaten a bittersweet treat. She was happy that Shadow had begun to wake up, but at the same time, she was _horrified _to find out that Shadow was in grave danger right now.

Shadow's body became relaxed again, like it was before; but his eyes could not stop moving. His ears moved to all directions and his mouth twitched. It seemed like he wanted to desperately wake up, but was unable to do so. The nurses left after making sure their patient was calm, but Silver and Amy stayed in the room, keeping a close eye for a while. They sat next to each other in front of Shadow's bed, staying quiet in deep thought. Silver looked occasionally at the pink hedgehog, studying her traits and behavior, her looks and her physique. She was like a butterfly that had just escaped from its cage, or like a flower bud that blossomed into a beautiful rose. Her hair was nearly reaching to her waist, and its curls fell graciously like a waterfall. She had a black headband that held back her curls; her bangs fell over her eyes, to the left. Her white shirt and grey pants made her look skinny and awfully attractive, but Silver did not want to focus on that. He was a Christian and he needed to focus on that. He looked at her and frowned slightly, his words quickly escaping his thoughts…

"Amy?"

Silver's voice interrupted the silence in the room.

"Yes, Silver?"

"What does Shadow mean to you?"

Amy blushed and made a shy smile, lifted her head and played with her hair.

"Shadow and I were just distant acquaintances after the A.R.K. thing, and after that, we never spoke again for like two years. One day I found him again at the market, and I asked him how he had been since the A.R.K. and the stuff that happened. Since that day we talked more frequently and it stood like that for like almost a year,"

"Interesting," Silver nodded.

"Then, at first, I developed a crush on him. But, after getting to know him, I noticed that I was wasting my time chasing a vain hope… Sonic meant everything to me, Silver. He meant the world, my reason to live. But I noticed that I was degrading myself, because each time I followed, he kindly rejected me, ending in heartbreak. But, with Shadow, it was different, Silver,"

Silver tilted his head and his eyes softened a little at the mention of his name.

"Shadow never let me chase him; instead, he picked me up each time we wanted to go somewhere; he gave me chances to improve in my talents and helped me with them; he always wanted to hug me instead of me wanting to hug him. It was _different_. He was everything I was searching in a guy, and I never had noticed until we began to know each other,"

Silver's eyes trailed off to Shadow's body as Amy spoke.

"But three years ago, I began to slowly love him. But, at the same time, I began to go to church. He became an atheist, but I tried not to speak to him about religion… It could make him mad and leave me alone, regardless of location or moment. I decided to surrender myself to the Lord, and let Him deal with Shadow's heart instead. Since that day, I've been waiting silently for Shadow to come to the Lord, and he has no clue how much I love him, and how much I want him to come with me to church at least once…"

Amy's eyes got glassy and she bit her lip, trying to hold her tears. Silver stretched his hand and placed it over Amy's shoulder, gently pulling her towards his chest fur.

"Silver, the plain question of what I feel towards him cannot be explained in a simple answer. I just cannot wait until he wakes up, just to tell him how I feel, and just to hug him again."

Silver hugged Amy tightly yet gently, and Silver sighed.

Amy broke the hug and Silver rested his head on his fist.

Suddenly, a weak male voice broke the silence in the room.

"God,"

Silver and Amy stood up and walked toward Shadow's bed.

"What, Shadow? What did you say?" Amy's eyes filled with tears of joy as she asked these words.

"God," he said in almost a whisper.

_Is he saying God?_

Amy hugged Silver and smiled happily to the sound of Shadow's voice.

Amy leaned over to Shadow and placed a gentle kiss in his forehead, and sat down again.

"Amy, I have to go now to check on another patient, I'll be back as soon as possible," Silver said.

"Okay, thanks for everything Silv," Amy smiled sweetly.

Silver exited the room and Amy stood quiet with Shadow. She stood up and walked towards the window of the room and stared at the city that was before her; she sighed and leaned against the wall. Out of nowhere a white dove flew to the window and landed in the small garden that adorned the view. Amy gasped and smiled at the sight of two orange eyes staring at her. The Dove moved its head back and forth and looked at Shadow. Amy knew this dove was no other than the Holy Spirit due to pasts encounters with Him.

"Thank You," she smiled and placed a hand on the glass.

"**You're welcome, Amy,"**

And with that, the Dove disappeared.

But Amy knew He was there.

* * *

><p>Jet sat down in the forest with Silence, Sonic, and the Dove that was with them.<p>

"What do I do to gain Your love… after all that I've done against You?" Jet cried uncontrollably. He was so _stupid _to believe that Lucifer would do anything good for him. The Holy Spirit's first question, "_What has done Lucifer for you that made you decide to follow Him?"_ was echoing through his mind. He was right; Lucifer had done nothing for him, only pain, suffering, loneliness, regret, solitude, danger, death; _spiritual _death; guilt…

_Anger._

"**Just let me live in your heart, teach you right from wrong; obey Me and you will see that all things will turn out for your own good; and just ask for forgiveness,"**

"That's it?"

"**You will learn much more as we get to know each other!"** The Dove chuckled, and walked towards Jet.

"Then, I repent… I'm sorry, I want to escape this hell I have been living! I just want to rest…"

"**And rest you will receive. Come to me all those who are burdened and tired, and I will give them rest."**

Jet grabbed the Dove in his cupped hands and hugged it softly, crying out loud.

"**You have been forgiven; sin no more; and always keep your eyes on Me!" **

Jet nodded slowly as he cleaned his tears with his arms. Sonic and Silence walked over to Jet and hugged him and the Dove stared at the scene with loving eyes.

"**I love you three more than you can ever imagine. Now, Sonic, go as soon as possible to the Hospital; Shadow is beginning to wake up. Silence, return to your wife, she has turned to Me and I will reunite you two; Jet, return to your home and rest for a while, I know you need it. After that, go to church and talk with an elderly hamster called Veronica—she will help you understand My Word. Don't worry, I will be there too."**

The three of them nodded and the Dove took off in flight. The trio went their separate ways.

This was going to be a day they would never forget.

* * *

><p>Tails was preparing himself to visit Shadow. He was informed that Shadow had an unexpected reaction and he wanted to go and see. But, to everyone's question; why did Tails never saw Shadow but only one or two times?<p>

He felt _guilty._

If Tails hadn't invited Shadow to the picnic, Shadow would be in his home, not in a hospital bed. Tails felt like if he was the entire cause of Shadow's situation. He couldn't eat or sleep and he had lost an awful amount of weight. His once semi-muscular body was now fading away, and his eyes were bloodshot for so much crying.

He wanted everyone to be happy, but because of that, he had one of his best friends lifeless in a hospital bed, where he doesn't belong. If only he had been quiet, if only he hadn't _insisted; _if only he had known that you mustn't force anything upon people, because God isn't like that.

He sat down again, feeling weak. His bed seemed inviting right now, so he crawled into it and closed his eyes. He began to cry uncontrollably and threw a pillow hard against the wall in anger.

"God… I'm sorry!" he shouted, "I'm sorry I forced Shadow to come to the picnic; I'm sorry caused everything! I hate myself, I hate what I did, I hate me, I HATE ME!"

Tails' bloodshot eyes scanned the area and saw a sharp metal ruler he had been using for some blueprints for an invention. Unbeknownst to Tails, a black shadow appeared next to his bed and whispered into his ear, making Tails think that its voice was his own thoughts.

"_You are worthless. You caused everything. You are a waste of time for your friends and for God,"_

Tails stood up slowly from the bed.

"_You have absolutely no reason to live anymore; you only cause damage and pain to others,"_

He grabbed the ruler and directed the sharp point to his wrist.

The creature grinned maliciously…

"_You have no value anymore; no one loves you, no one would ever want you again after all you've done. Just end your life, and you will end your friend's misery of knowing you. And Shadow will be happy, because it was __you__ who caused this,"_

Tails' hands began to shake uncontrollably, and his sight was blurry due to the river of tears.

"_You do not deserve to live!"_

"**STOP!"**

Tails threw the ruler away and stood up, looking to every direction to find the source of the Voice. His breathing was uneven and he began to sweat. He turned on the lights and began to look to all directions.

"W-what? W-who are you?"

"**I AM, Tails,"**

Tails fell down on his bed and began to cry for the millionth time in about two weeks.

"**You are not guilty of anything, Tails."**

"But Lord, I—"

"**Listen, my son; what is happening to Shadow is my purpose; I told you in the beginning to just **_**trust **_**in me,"**

"I know Lord… I feel like I just tried to kill Shadow!"

"**You didn't; calm down, my son. Go to the hospital and go to room 406-A, before visiting Shadow. You will do what I will tell you. And Tails?"**

"Yes, Lord?" Tails sniffed and cleaned his tears.

"**You are far more valuable than you think, my son. You should already know that. You know that I love you, and that in that same day that the accident happened, Espio and Rouge turned to Me. You are my precious treasure, my son. Never forget that!" **

Tails smiled and thanked Him.

Silence filled the room again.

* * *

><p>After recomposing himself of his earlier encounter with God, Tails went to the hospital and before visiting Shadow, Tails went to the room that was prior to Shadow's lair. He entered rather hesitantly, but after a few seconds of thought, he opened the door. He saw a bald eagle sleeping silently. He was covered with bandages and seemed to have a few broken bones. Tails looked to his surroundings and noticed he was alone. He stepped in and grabbed a chair next to the bed. The eagle turned his head and opened his eyes widely at the sign of the two-tailed stranger.<p>

"Wh… Who are you?"

"I am Miles Prower, but just call me Tails,"

"Uh… my name is Kyte. What brings you here?"

"To tell you the truth and nothing else but the truth, I have no idea! God just told me to visit you!" Tails smiled and wagged his namesake simultaneously.

A few minutes after some scattered chatter, Tails asked Kyte a very important question.

"Well, Kyte, what happened to you?"

"I had a car accident. All I remember is a dark red Chevy Cobalt and me being drunk,"

Tails froze.

"Did you say _dark red Chevy Cobalt?" _Tails made emphasis on the question rather awkwardly for Kyte's liking.

"Yeah?"

"You hit my best friend, then," Tails said coldly.

Kyte opened his eyes with shock.

"D-dude, I had no idea!"

"I know, Kyte, I know…"

_God, so, you sent me to the guy who hit Shadow?_

_**Yes, Tails. He needs to be saved.**_

_You know I have mixed emotions about this…_

_**I know. I trust you, Tails. So, I need you to trust Me.**_

_Okay._

Tails broke his short chat with God and looked at Kyte compassionately and stood up.

"Do you feel happy because of what you did?"

"No, Tails. In fact, I wish I could go back in time…"

"Do you feel like you need forgiveness?

"Yes, all the time…"

"Do you feel like you need to honor your species' symbol: freedom?"

"Yes, my friend…"

Kyte began to cry softly and Tails laid a hand in his forehead.

"I feel horrible, Tails; I feel so _stupid _and _guilty. _I want this to end…"

After talking a while more, Kyte converted to the Lord. Tails said his goodbyes and gave Kyte his phone number. He then when to Shadow's room and found Amy sleeping in a chair close to Shadow's bed.

He sat down, closed his eyes, and drifted away.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, enjoy! Read and review please! <strong>

**With lurve, Nameria.**


	7. Chapter 7: Realizations

**HOWDY PARTNERS! ;D Please enjoy the following chapter. This chapter will be a tad bit dialogue-filled, sorry for that!**

* * *

><p>Not one.<p>

Not two.

But_ three_ days passed, and Shadow opened his eyes.

Four.

Five.

Six days have ran through the time, and Shadow is now talking short sentences.

Seven.

Eight.

Nine.

Ten days, and now Shadow is sitting in his bed, and was able to talk again.

Amy, Tails, Silver, and Sonic had been with Shadow the most. A few days ago, Blaze, Rouge, Knuckles and Espio arrived to the hospital and explained that they were extremely busy, but Espio had great news.

"Hello comrades, I have great news for you guys," the ninja smiled and sat down on one of the chairs.

"What is it, Espio?" Rouge asked curiously.

"Both Vector and Charmy are assisting to my church! I can't wait to see them start again soon," Espio made a sweet smile and everyone clapped.

Sonic looked at Shadow and then made his trademark smirk.

"Hey, I forgot! Silence's wife got back together with him and they'll get married. He invited us to the wedding, and I'm his best man!"

"Way to go, Sonic!" Tails happily interjected, high-fiving his best friend and brother.

In the midst of all the happiness and conversation, Shadow scanned the group in front of him. Amy was sitting next to him, and her hand was close to his. He stared at her and tilted his head.

_She did say something about me in her prayer… I'll ask about it when we're alone._

Shadow looked at everyone else; Sonic was making jokes, Knuckles was joking around with Rouge, Tails was talking with Blaze, Espio was just sitting down listening and laughing to Sonic's jokes. Shadow then closed his eyes and tried relax before saying anything.

"Guys, I have to tell you something," he said.

Everyone immediately stopped talking and gathered around the bed, with huge eyes and their ears fully prepared to listen. Shadow at first tried to hold back a chuckle, but the attempt was futile. He then looked at Amy and Tails, and a small tear began to roll from his crimson eyes to his white chest fur. Everyone seemed astonished at the sight of Shadow _crying._

Now, _that _was unusual.

"Firstly, I want to say I am sorry. I am sorry that I yelled at you, Tails, at the picnic; I'm sorry that I left you alone all those times you talked to me about God, Amy; I'm sorry, Sonic, for our past differences; I am sorry Rouge, I am sorry Espio, I'm sorry Knuckles, I'm sorry everyone,"

His breathing became broken and shattered as he tried to keep back the tears.

Everyone was mute.

"While I was in coma, I had the most dreadful experience I've never dreamt of," he bit his lip and his ears flattened against his skull, "I was firstly sleeping on sand. When I noticed that I was in a beach, I desperately tried to regain my conscience, but as I was trying to understand what was happening, two dark red hands pulled me under the sand." Shadow covered his mouth and tried to hold back the tears that were freefalling from his eyes.

_Silence._

Silver walked in and noticed the group of friends circling around Shadow and he was speaking. Silver was amazed at Shadow's _remarkable _recovery; but instead of interrupting, Silver crawled next to Sonic and Tails and they happily made space for him.

"Next thing I know, I was in a dark place called Hell. A huge monster that I do not want to describe right now grabbed me by the neck and pushed a plaque against my chest and wrote something. I believe it was _atheism_, but I'm not sure. I couldn't look at it, it was too disturbing to see that incrusted in my chest," Shadow trembled and touched his chest, noticing a huge scar that crossed it. He ignored it and kept talking.

"After a series of events, I was tortured, beaten, and I saw Eggman,"

Pause.

Eggman?

"You saw Eggman, Shadow?" Sonic said depressed.

"Yes, I believe so. I tried to call him so he could take shelter in my cage, but it was no use; he was being consumed by worms and fire…"

Sonic's eyes became glassy.

"Anyway, another demon grabbed me and forced me to watch a replay of certain moments of my life. He grabbed my eyes and pulled them open, and even if I tried, I couldn't escape his grip," he placed his two hands on top of his eyes and inhaled deeply.

"Then, millions of Mobians and humans were gathered in a certain area, and out of nowhere a humongous wall of flames began to fall, and we all ran. I tried to escape, but the flames followed my every step. When I encountered a wall, I knelt down and screamed to God that I was sorry, and to please have mercy of me,"

"What happened then?" Amy softly asked, grabbing timidly Shadow's hand. He grabbed it back and began to caress it with his thumb.

"An earthquake shook Hell and the demons ran away; a bright light came from beyond and a huge hand grabbed me, and my plaque fell to Hell again. After a few minutes, I was again in the same beach I woke up first," he said and sighed.

"That was horrible, Shadow," Rouge said as a small tear fell from her left eye.

"But now comes the good part. I woke up in the beach and a white Dove introduced himself; His name was the Holy Spirit, and we walked on water, and started to climb on an invisible staircase," Shadow said, with tears of joy falling from his eyes.

"Wow!" Sonic interjected and smiled.

"Then, I reached Heaven; I saw Jesus, and in there, I repented and saw… I… I saw Maria, guys,"

Everyone gasped at the mention of her name. Shadow began to cry tears of joy and happiness.

"She was there, as beautiful as ever; we hugged, and after long minutes of crying, Jesus, Maria and I explored Heaven together. There was a huge dinner table and Jesus told me to tell you guys that you have to prepare, because the Rapture will take place soon, and we have to be ready in order to go with Him!" Shadow smiled and looked out of the window. He saw the Dove looking at him and apparently smiling, but only Shadow could see Him.

"Then, an angel came to us with a basket and in it was a baby that was aborted; Jesus did something strange but amazing with his hands and the boy turned to be like fifteen! And after that, a few more talking and such, Maria left, and I came back here with the LORD, and here I am now,"

Everyone stood quiet. They were amazed, maybe_ too _amazed, because no one could speak.

"Before anyone has questions, I'd like to speak to Miss Amy alone,"

Everyone exchanged looks and shrugged at the same time. They exited the room and waited patiently, and happily spoke of what they just heard.

* * *

><p>Shadow signaled Amy to sit next to him in his bed, and so she did. He grabbed her hand and placed his other hand on top of it, and sighed. She was confused, but she was about to explode right now.<p>

"Amy, when I came back from Heaven, I heard you pray,"

"A-awesome, Shadow!" Amy smiled and closer her eyes, trying to give off a sweet smile for him.

"But I did hear you mention something about how you felt about _me,"_

_PAAAUSE!_

_Oh my goodness, oh my gosh, oh my—_

"What did you mean by that, Amy?"

_AGH, GET ME OUT OF HERE!_

"Uh, erm, ehh…"

"Take your time, Rose,"

"I-I um… meant that… Okay, I don't care how this comes out but… Okay. I… I… I l-love you, Shadow, since a long time. But I didn't tell you anything because I thought you didn't like me because I was a Christian," Amy was now blushing like crazy, and a dark red shade invaded her skin.

Shadow looked at her eyes and so did she.

"_I _thought that you didn't like _me _because I was an atheist, Ames," he chuckled.

They both stared at each other and a burst of laughter filled the room. When they finally calmed down, Shadow's tone lowered an octave, making Amy blush even more.

"Amy, thank you for being here with me always, and for the prayers, and for everything; thank you for never leaving my side; I owe you one," Shadow smiled and extended his arm to reach Amy's cheek.

"You don't have to repay me, Shadow…"

"Oh, but I do… Amy?"

_Thump-thump._

"Yes, Shadow…?"

_Thump-thump._

"I love yo—"

He was interrupted by Amy's sudden kiss. He opened his eyes in shock but quickly closed them, and he enjoyed the moment. She broke the kiss and hugged him tightly, and began to cry in his chest fur. She was careful not to hurt him in any way. She gave him a light kiss in his lips and smiled into his eyes.

"You have _no _idea how much I wanted this, Shadow,"

"Me too, Rose, me too."

"When you recover, Shadow, will you go to church with me?"

"Of course my love, I will go wherever you want me to go!" He smiled and hugged her again. He kissed her forehead and she played with his chest fur. Ten minutes later, everyone else entered.

Everyone's eyes were shifty, looking at the scene.

"Whaaat's goin' on here?" Rouge smirked and placed a hand on her hips.

Amy blushed heavily and sat upright at lightning speed. Both her and Shadow blushed heavily.

"We're dating now?" Shadow asked and covered his mouth.

Everyone began to laugh uncontrollably. Silver suddenly entered with a fruit basket and placed it gently on Shadow's lap.

"This is for my favorite patient, and congrats on your amazing recovery," Silver smiled and Shadow did too.

"Thanks Silver," Shadow grabbed an apple from the basket and sunk his teeth in it and began to eat it.

"PICTURE TIME!" Sonic placed his camera on top of a high place and switched on the timer. At the count of three, the picture was taken, and they were all smiling and making funny faces. Sonic went back and grabbed the camera, looking at the picture. He began to laugh, and everyone tried to guess how the picture looked like.

"Hah, Knux, you look like you're about to throw up!"

"HEY! That's my funny face!"

"Haha, Espio, you're one leg short!"

Everyone began to laugh at Sonic's antics. But suddenly his smile vanished and he desperately zoomed at the picture.

"Guys…? Come look!"

The white Dove was on Shadow's shoulder with His wings open.

"Wow! Now, we _need_ to frame that!" Blaze exclaimed happily.

* * *

><p>Two weeks later, Shadow was fully recovered, but he still needed to rest a lot.<p>

_Man, I missed this place!_

He opened his door and entered his house. It seemed different now; more light entered into it.

He sat down and looked at his Bible. It was in the same place, same position he had left it since he left that dreaded day. He looked at it lovingly and grabbed it, opening its pages. He smiled weakly as he read John 3:16 for the second time.

"_For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life."_

It had a whole new different meaning for him. He began to read it slowly, trying to capture the meaning of each word. A tear escaped his eyes and he kept reading the Bible; it was like if it was alive, speaking to him. He looked out of a window and hugged the Bible, and then placed it safely on top of the dinner table. He walked to his room and took off his clothes and changed into his pajamas. He curled into his bed and drifted away in peaceful slumber...

Everything turns white.

_Thump-thump._

_Thump-thump. Thump-thump._

_What the…!_

_Boom._

His eyes open.

_What the…!_

_Was this all a…_

_..._

_..._

_A dream?_

* * *

><p><strong>WHAAT? O.o XD Stay tuuuned.<strong>

**Read and review. Sorry for the short chapter. :3**

**Love, NamNammmmmmmmmmmmmm**


	8. Chapter 8: I Surrender

**SORRY, I corrected a few typos! If you spot any tell me!**

**Hey guys! Don't sue me because of the ending of the last chapter! xD I'll be sad to inform that this is the last chapter, and then the epilogue. It has been a pleasure writing this; but remember that this isn't the end of my Christian project. There will be many stories like this one to come! I am thankful for all the support, reviews and PMs that this story has gotten; I give God all the glory. It was Him who motivated me into writing this story in the first place. I love You God! Thank You! **

**Enjoy.**

* * *

><p><em>Seriously?<em>

_Was this all a dream?_

Shadow ran from his bedroom to his bathroom in a millisecond and felt his stomach go up his neck. The contents of last night's dinner escaped his mouth and his entire body trembled. His breath was heavy and irregular; his body was trembling; his pores were sweating. He desperately flushed the toilet and he stood up and washed his mouth with water. He tried to relax, but his attempts were futile. His heart was about to implode inside his chest. He looked at his wrist watch and it marked 7:39pm. He escaped from the bathroom and ran to the front door, taking a sharp turn to the right.

As he ran desperately, the tears began to escape his bloodshot eyes. He ran as fast as he could; he felt like someone was making him run to somewhere; the feeling? _Unexplainable. _The reason? _Unknown. _He just wanted to escape his own conscience.

As he kept running, scenes of his previous dream began to pass in front of him like a horror movie.

"No," he cried, "it _can't _be real!"

He felt an urge to take a sharp left in his way, and without knowing began to approach a building. It was a white building, and unbeknownst to him, a tall wooden cross adorned the roof of the place.

A white elderly tiger was preaching about John 3:16. Shadow began to hear what he was saying as he began to enter the building.

"And it is with great love that our loving Father sent His only Son, for your salvation, for my salvation, for everyone's _redemption,_" he said in that tone of voice that captured people's immediate attention, "He was crucified, and He was barely _recognizable _as a human being; but He did it for you, for me, for us; Love is not shaped like a heart, but it is shaped as a cross; it was Him who gave love, obedience and _sacrifice _a new meaning, for us to embrace."

Shadow entered the building and began to run through the hall, oblivious to the crowd of one-hundred and fifty people that were listening to the service. Tears ran down his eyes and the white tiger's eyes opened widely at the scene of a black and red hedgehog, wearing only but jeans and sandals, entering desperately to the service and crying out loud.

"YOU! I-I want what you're preaching!" Shadow yelled; the whole church became silent.

"Excuse me, sonny," the tiger lovingly said, "what do you mean by that?"

"I-I just want Him! I want God!" Shadow was horribly confused at his own words; he didn't make sense to himself right now, but the white tiger understood.

"I want everyone to pray for him right there, brothers and sisters," the tiger spoke to all the church. Everyone bowed their heads respectfully and silently prayed for Shadow, while others did it out loud.

A familiar pink hedgehog stood next to him, but he was too consumed in tears to understand what was happening to himself, and to his surroundings.

"What is your name, sonny?" the tiger asked as he walked towards the hedgehog.

"Shadow… Shadow the Hedgehog,"

It was like a bucket of cold water was thrown at the entire congregation.

"Wait, _THE _Shadow the hedgehog?" a distant voice asked from somewhere in the church.

"Yes, just pray for me already please, _please, _I need this…"

The white tiger was now kind of nervous due to the infamous hedgehog's presence, but nevertheless, he continued and knelt down to be at eye level with Shadow.

"I am Pastor Vincent, and I will ask you to please repeat this prayer," Vincent smiled and they both closed his eyes.

"God, I come to You to tell you that I repent; Clean my soul from my sins; I want You to be in my heart; write my name in the Book of Life; help me walk in Your way; and God, I never want to return to my evil path. I accept You as my only and personal Savior; come to my heart, and stay there forever; I want to leave with You in the Rapture to be with You for eternity. In the name of Jesus, Amen,"

Shadow repeated every word, without missing any punctuation mark. He felt like someone had just lifted a weight from his shoulders. He suddenly felt a soft hand stroke his back; he lifted his sight to see Amy smiling and crying next to him. He opened his eyes widely and threw himself to the pink hedgehog; she, at first shocked due to the unexpected hug, blushed; but after realizing what had just happened, they both embraced for what seemed hours.

"Shadow, I am glad you are here," she sobbed as he stroked the back of her head and played with her long hair.

"Shadow the Hedgehog," Vincent stood up and spoke through the microphone, smiling and with tears in his eyes; he said the phrase he never thought he would say to this particular hedgehog…

"Welcome to our family, my son."

Everyone stood up and clapped; many of the people that were nearby to him came to Shadow and hugged him, congratulating him. He was still tear-filled, but he managed to pull his lips into a smile. But inside of him, a raging battle was about to take place.

* * *

><p>Later that night after the service was over, Shadow went back home after saying his goodbyes to everyone and to Amy. He realized that in his panic attack, he left the door open. He quickly entered and turned the lights on, and began to inspect to see if no intruders had taken advantage. When he made sure that everything was okay, he sat down on his favorite couch and began to cry.<p>

It was there that the battle begun.

A black shadow appeared from nowhere and began to speak into Shadow's ear, making him think it was his own thoughts.

"_How pathetic; you submitted yourself into something that __**you **__thought that was an illogical fairytale,"_

Shadow's eyes trailed off to the Bible that was placed on top of the kitchen table.

"_Didn't you see when you said your name? People actually doubted you! You do nothing but bring fear to people around you. You're pathetic to think that God would accept you! And what are you thinking? It was just a dream, moron!"_

Shadow frowned as he made his trademark "_hmph." _He stood up and walked to the Bible, caressing the red cover with the golden words that read _HOLY BIBLE: New International Version._

"Just a dream, huh? I beg to differ," he talked to himself.

"_What has happened to you, Shadow? You have turned from a relentless monster to a crying wimp! Ridiculous, stupid! What will people think of you?"_

"**Shadow."**

His eyes shot open at the sudden interruption of a familiar Voice.

The voice he was first hearing made a terrifying shriek and escaped from the house.

"**Shadow."**

Did he dare to look to the right?

_Thump-thump._

Those orange eyes.

_Thump-thump._

Those white, glistening feathers.

_Thump-thump._

That _unforgettable _stare.

"You…!"

Shadow could barely speak right now. He was in pure shock.

"**I AM, Shadow,"**

"You're from my dream!"

"**I know," **the dove chuckled and flew to Shadow's shoulder, **"and I am happy to say that Heaven is having a wonderful party right now."**

Shadow's head tilted.

"Why, Lord?"

"**Because of you, my child! Welcome to the family!"**

Shadow smiled and the Dove stared at him lovingly.

A sudden wave of guilt entered Shadow's digestive system, making him frown instantly.

"Lord, I am sorry…"

"**Sorry for what, Shadow?"**

Shadow seemed puzzled for a second.

"Because I didn't believe in You, and I have been avoiding You my entire life…?"

"**Shadow, I already forgave you for that. I do not only forgive, but I also forget your past sins; I only focus on your present and future. The past is left behind, Shadow. It is time for you to begin walking with Me in My path,"**

Shadow nodded and a smile tear escaped from his eye. It was amazing how can God forgive and _also _forget one's sins.

"**I love you, Shadow,"**

Shadow smiled for the first time in a few days and his heart wanted to explode.

"**And thank you for giving Me the opportunity to live in your heart."**

Suddenly, the Dove disappeared, but Shadow knew He was there.

* * *

><p>The next day, Shadow called everyone and made a conference call. Once everyone was on the line, Shadow sighed and began to speak.<p>

"Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone for being very patient with me these past few years, but yesterday was a life-changing experience that I'd like to share with you guys."

Everyone just made a quiet "mm-hmm" and listened quietly.

"I had a dream. A dream like no other," Shadow sighed deeply and continued, "and it featured me having an accident, staying in coma for like two or three weeks, and in the meanwhile, me being in Hell, then in Heaven. In the dream, I was a hard-core atheist, while in reality I just didn't believe in anything. It was like a dream that foreshadowed something in the future,"

"Seriously, Shadow? That's a one-of-a-kind dream you had right there!" Sonic said, making everyone else agree with him.

"I woke up and I threw up, and I don't know what got into me… I ran desperately out of the door. Heck, I even left the door open!"

Everyone made a small chuckle or giggle.

"I ran desperately and reached a tall building. In it there were like two-hundred people staring at me, but I didn't notice them until later. A white tiger called Pastor Vincent was preaching about John 3:16; it was the _exact same verse _that my dream began with. I interrupted the service and when I said my name the people actually got _scared… _But I don't blame them,"

"I didn't get scared, Shadow," Amy's voice interrupted. "They just judge for your past actions. I do not care about what you did in the past,"

"Thanks Amy," Shadow was glad all of this was by phone—he was blushing a bit right now.

"Shadow and Amy kissin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I—"

"SHUT UP!" both Shadow and Amy exclaimed in unison, interrupting Rouge, and getting everyone to laugh uncontrollably.

"Yeah, funny… Anyway, getting back on topic. I accepted Christ as my Savior. I arrived home and my thoughts began to haunt me and try to make me go back, but all of the sudden I heard someone calling my name. It was the Holy Spirit, who made Himself present as a Dove… We had a little talk and now I'm calling you guys."

Everyone clapped and cheered, making Shadow chuckle.

"Sonic, I am sorry for our past differences… I was foolish. I want you to be my brother, if it isn't a bother,"

"You already _are _my brother in Christ, silly!" Sonic chuckled and Shadow did too.

"Rouge, I am sorry because I treated you harshly in the past few days, but I want to tell you that I love you like a sister I never had, and I thank you for your admirable patience with me,"

"No problem at all, Shads!"

"But I still don't like that nickname…"

Everyone began to laugh, making Shadow smile too.

"Knuckles, Espio, Tails; I am sorry if I ever did anything bad to you guys. I wasn't thinking straight,"

"It's quite alright!" Tails said lovingly.

"I forgive you," Knuckles stated matter-of-factly.

"I do too, Shadow," Espio agreed positively.

"Amy… thanks for everything. You have been very special to me these past days, and maybe I've treated you incorrectly. I am sorry, and thank you for being there for me when I needed you, even without asking. You have been very special to me and I want the crew to know that. I'll be available twenty-four seven if you need me,"

"Aw, thank you Shadow…"

"Awwwwww!" Everyone said at the same time.

Shadow then finished talking with the crew a few minutes later. A quick chirping sound entered his ear drums and he turned his head towards the backyard, and saw a white Dove cooing and looking at him. His eyes were fiery orange, making Shadow immediately recognize who He was.

The dove stared at him, opened his wings, and disappeared.

But as always, His presence was still there.

* * *

><p><strong><span>FOUR YEARS LATER<span>**

The sun began to set, making the sky like a painting, filled with yellow, red, orange, pink and purple paint, creating a beautiful masterpiece. The sea was serene and quiet, but for a certain pink hedgehog, her heart was anything but. After three beautiful years of a Christ-centered relationship with Shadow, and another year of preparations, invitations and celebration, she was definitely ready for this. Her white dress danced with the wind; sparkling jewels adorned her ears; her hair was curled and it went completely to her right shoulder, falling on top of her torso. She had makeup that was just perfect—not too much or barely visible—and her lips were shining, also wearing a beautiful smile. Her dress was fitting to her body; a golden ribbon adorned the dress to perfection. The dress reached to the ground, not revealing her white shoes that were hidden underneath.

He was next to her, wearing a black tuxedo, a white shirt and a golden tie completed the outfit, and an irremovable smile that complimented the moment.

Pastor Vincent awaited the couple eagerly, and began his ceremony.

After a few words of the meaning of true, Christ-centered love, Vincent asked the couple a few questions.

"Amelia Rose the Hedgehog, do you promise to love Shadow in good and in bad, in health and in sickness, when rich and when poor, and over all things, until death separates you from him?"

Amy looked at Shadow, who was face-to-face, looking at her with that same expression filled with love that never seemed to end. She smiled and a tear came out her beautiful eyes.

"Yes, I do,"

"Shadow the Hedgehog, do you promise to love Amelia in good and in bad, in health and in sickness, when rich and when poor, and over all things, until death separates you from her?"

He looked at her and tears began to flow from his eyes. The wind began to blow from all directions; the ocean was making beautiful sounds, and so did the birds. This moment right here was perfect.

"Yes, I do,"

"Then, by the power invested on me, I now declare you husband and wife—you may now kiss the bride!" Vincent smiled and the crowd began to cheer at the newlywed couple.

Shadow placed his hands on Amy's cheeks and pulled her close to him, and they kissed.

"Ahh, this is so touching, I… wanna.. Ah!" Sonic began crying at the sight that was a little too overwhelming for him.

"Heh, don't worry Sonic, the next wedding you'll attend to will be ours, my love," Sally said while she hugged Sonic from behind.

The claps began to cease as the traditional wedding song began to play from a white piano that was being played by Vanilla, who was also crying at the scene.

The new couple began to march towards the red Hummer limousine that awaited them at the back, and everyone clapped. They began to smile and everyone began to take pictures of the couple, and they happily smiled to every single one of the pictures.

Shadow's life took a turn for the better, and he was thankful because God came just in time. His life took a new meaning and purpose, and all thanks to Him. His frown had been turned into a smile, and his heart was now tranquil and peaceful always. Sure, he was still Shadow, so sometimes, little bits of his personality could come back at any given moment, but he would notice and correct it quickly. But his life was now completed.

He now understood the true meaning of the word_ redemption._

_Redemption…_

It was just what he had been searching for.

* * *

><p><strong>YAYZ, the end! If you don't like ShadAmy or Sonally, then I'm sorry, but it's mah story. :B I'm so happy that this has touched the lives of many people, and I give God the complete glory and credit for this. Thank you guys for being so supportive, seriously. Next, the EPILOGUE! (Oh, and I posted a link of Amy's wedding dress and look in my profile!)<strong>

**Thanks for everything!**

**With love, Nameria**


	9. Epilogue

**Hello guys! Here is the much awaited epilogue! Like I said before, thank you for all your support and kind reviews I've received! Thanks to Jeremy Lannigan, BlissofanAngel, Storm337, Mikaela the Cat and many others who have faithfully reviewed Redemption! May the Lord continue blessing all of you guys, you guys have just earned a humongous thank you cookie. **

**Stay tuned for my next story, Camouflage! Espio is the main character, and you won't believe what he'll go through! I don't know why, but I'm starting to like tortur—I mean, abus—I mean, have fun with these characters. :]**

**Thanks for everything! Enjoy.**

* * *

><p><strong>TEN YEARS LATER<strong>

"Good morning!" a beautiful female voice was heard as Shadow opened his eyes. She leaned toward Shadow and gave him a morning kiss. He first hesitated to wake up but at the sight of his angelic wife, he couldn't refuse waking up.

"Good morning, my rose," Shadow kissed her back and smiled.

"It's Sunday, we have to wake up, my darling. Remember you have to preach today!" Amy playfully reminded her husband. She stretched and stood up lazily from the bed, and walked to the bathroom.

"I know, my love," he chuckled, and quickly followed her.

"MOM, TELL AKIRA TO GIVE ME MY IPOD BACK!" a young, eight-year-old, male voice broke the happy, peaceful sanctum that Amy and Shadow lived in. Better said, _wanted _to live in.

"Oh, Shadow, please take care of them this time! I did it last time and you know what happened to my hair, legs and mental sanity!" Amy pleaded her husband and Shadow chuckled in response.

"Okay, Amy, fine. But—"

"DAD! TELL DAMON I WON'T GIVE HIM HIS IPO—AGH! DAAA_AAD_!"

"I'M COMING, GUYS! JUST QUIT FIGHTING OVER A MATERIAL OBJECT AND GET PREPARED FOR CHURCH, _NOW_!"

A sudden silence was heard and a weak reply continued.

"…Fine, dad! We love you!"

"I love you too guys…"

After some minutes, Amy and Shadow took a bath, and were _almost _dressed and prepared for the service today. Shadow was very nervous right now, but he has preached before—no biggie, right?

Wrong.

This was a special preaching service; it was today that he was going to reveal his past, and how did he arrive to where he was standing.

"Pumpkin, COME DOWN, I HAVE PANCAKES!" Amy was heard from below at the kitchen.

"BUT YOU PROMISED WAFFLES!"

"WHATEVER, PANCAKEY WAFFLES THEN. JUST COME AND EAAAT! I LOVE YOU!"

"I love you too!"

Shadow chuckled and began to put on his red tie. He had already a white, long-sleeved shirt, but he rolled up the sleeves to his elbows. He put on black jeans, some perfume, and he was ready to go.

"I'm coming!"

He began to run down the wooden stairs until he reached to the kitchen. His two children were surprisingly behaving and sitting down peacefully, ignoring the fact that they were arguing a few minutes ago.

Akira was a light grey hedgehog with red eyes, two quills like Amy's in each side of her face, with long bangs that covered her left eye, and the rest of her quills were almost like Shadow's. She had black and pink streaks that adorned her petite face. She was dressed in a white dress, and under it, grey jeans, and some jewelry to go with.

Damon was a dark grey hedgehog, almost black; he had green eyes, and his bangs went backwards like a mohawk. His back quills were like Shadow's. White and red streaks adorned his features. He was dressed with a black and white graphic t-shirt, blue jeans and some black Converse.

"Good morning, Bickering Duo," Shadow teasingly joked and kissed Akira and Damon's forehead, making them smile.

"Good morning, daddy!" The eight-year-olds greeted cheerfully.

Shadow sat down on the table, and Amy quickly brought the "pancakey waffles" Amy spoke of. Although he knew they were possibly pancakes, he didn't care. He opened her eyes in surprise when he saw red velvet waffles, covered with delicious syrup, powdered sugar, whip cream, literally, _a cherry on top._

"Oh my goodness gracious!" Shadow exclaimed, kissing Amy immediately.

"_EWW_, YOU GUYS! Get a room!"

Amy giggled and she gave Shadow a smirk and a wink, and brought the pancakes for her children, and another set of red velvet waffles for herself.

* * *

><p>New Horizon Church was already getting filled with people. They had moved to a whole new location, and the place was <em>huge. <em>And Shadow's nerves were also… _getting in his nerves. _Sounds like a contradiction, but it quite wasn't for him. Since Shadow converted to the Lord, his emotions came back. He felt pain, happiness, bliss, and most of all: _tension. _His stomach was hurting and his hands were shaking; he held the paper where he had written down his message, and the paper began to shake just as much as him. He looked at Amy, who was next to him reassuring him, and to his rambunctious twins, who were cheering at him and telling him by signals that he was going to do great. He saw the signals as _Morse's Code—_all he saw was movement, but he didn't understand a bit. He was far too nervous to understand.

"Shadow, let's make a prayer, I think you need it,"

Shadow stared back at Amy as she was staring at the gelatinous paper that Shadow was holding, or _trying _to hold.

"Uh, yeah, thanks Ames, please do,"

They bowed their heads and Amy began to pray.

"Lord, we come to You this glorious morning to ask for Your help. Help Shadow calm down and focus on You the whole time, and help him concentrate, please. Help him gain souls that need redemption, and all the glory will be Yours, and Yours only, for generations to come. I pray in the name of Jesus, amen!"

Shadow let out the breath he was holding and his heart rate began to slow down. He was still nervous, but he wasn't shaking that vigorously like before.

The choir began to sing and that helped Shadow calm down a lot.

_All to Jesus I surrender  
>All to Him I freely give<br>I will ever love and trust Him;  
>In His presence daily live<em>

Shadow closed his eyes and smiled at the soothing music and sang along. Amy joined him, and the twins closed their eyes. The five hundred plus people and Mobians who were attending also did, some lifted their hands up in worship.

_All to Jesus I surrender  
>Humbly at His feet I bow<br>Worldly pleasures all forsaken  
>Take me, Jesus, take me now,<br>I surrender all  
>I surrender all<br>All to Thee my blessed Savior  
>I surrender all<br>_

Shadow began to lift his hands and melt himself into the hymn.

_All to Jesus I surrender  
>Make me Savior wholly thine<br>May Thy Holy Spirit fill me  
>May I know Thy power divine<br>I surrender all  
>I surrender all<em>

_All to Thee my blessed Savior  
>I surrender all<br>I surrender all  
>I surrender all<br>All to Thee my blessed Savior  
>I surrender all<br>I surrender all  
>All to Thee my blessed Savior<br>I surrender all_

A tear fell from Shadow's eye as the choir ended the beautiful song, and the entire church began to clap. Soon after, the other song started, this time, a little bit more pumped and happy.

_What does it mean to be saved?  
>Isn't it more than just a prayer to pray?<br>More than just a way to heaven?  
>What does it mean to be His?<br>To be formed in His likeness  
>Know that we have a purpose<br>_

Shadow began to clap and listen intently to the lyrics.

_To be salt and light in the world (in the world)  
>To be salt and light in the world<em>

_Let the redeemed of the Lord say so_  
><em>Let the redeemed of the Lord say so<em>  
><em>Let the redeemed of the Lord say so<em>  
><em>Say So! Say So!<em>

He began to jump like many of the other people who were around him and he began to enjoy the song and his family followed his example.

_Oh that the Church will arise  
>Oh that we would see with Jesus eyes<br>We could show the world heaven  
>Show what it means to be His<br>To be formed in His likeness  
>Show them they have a purpose<em>

_I am redeemed_  
><em>To be salt and light in the world<em>

_Let the redeemed of the Lord rise up_  
><em>Let the redeemed of the Lord rise up<em>  
><em>Let the redeemed of the Lord rise up<em>  
><em>Rise Up! Rise Up!<em>

* * *

><p>After all the songs, prayers and Scripture verses read, it was finally time for Pastor Vincent to present Shadow as the preacher. Shadow's heart wanted to escape through his throat; he was a total <em>wreck <em>right now, but he tried to calm down.

Before Shadow knew it, loud clapping, prayer, and a microphone were all the obstacles that he needed to pass before he encountered himself in front of five hundred plus people, waiting for what he had to say.

He sighed and began to talk.

"God bless the people of God! For those that don't know me, I am Shadow the Hedgehog, and today's message will be titled as: Redemption."

The title grabbed everyone's attention in a single second.

Suddenly, he stood still, not moving an inch. He saw the Dove that he was so familiar with standing in front of him in the wooden pulpit, and His orange eyes stared into Shadow's bloody red eyes.

"**You will speak what I tell you, Shadow,"**

Shadow nodded and began to talk.

"Long before any of you knew me, I was created as the Ultimate Lifeform. As many of you know it, I am ageless and immortal, but I have faith that I will one day go to the Heavens with my Lord when He comes to look for us in the Rapture,"

A few "amens" were heard.

After telling his story of ARK, at least a short glimpse of it, he now began to go to the point he wanted to get to.

"More than fifteen years ago I had a dream that changed my entire existence, my purpose and my thoughts," He began to recount his dream and it caught people's attention. He went into every detail until he finished where he woke up.

"I woke up desperately and escaped my house. I was a wreck of nerves, just like I am right now," the entire congregation laughed, "and I began to escape. From what, you may ask? I was trying to run away from myself—from my conscience, from my errors; like many of you here tonight. I was running from reality, from _my _reality. I know many of you guys here are also do the same, because the reality that you guys face makes you naïve; it makes you believe that no one is able to help you. I ran until I reached the church, and Pastor Vincent was declaring beautiful words that I remember like if it happened yesterday—God gave his only Son for our redemption; also, he said that love is shaped like a cross, not like a heart; and that Jesus gave obedience, love and sacrifice a new meaning, for us to embrace,"

Pastor Vincent smiled sweetly as he remembered those words.

"I was redeemed that day. I never knew the true meaning of the word redemption until I experienced it myself. I became a whole new person, with God's amazing help. I am still a person, so I still do my mistakes, but I always remember that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me! I remember that He is my Pastor! I remember that he is my Fortress, and my light in the dark! I remember that I am redeemed! I remember that I am born again! I remember all of those things, because my mind becomes the mind the redeemed, and I think like one! God makes me triumphant in Him, and all my past is left behind! If you had an atrocious past, keep turning the page! God is writing a new chapter in your story, God is directing the next scene in your movie, God is creating the next path for you to cross!"

Shadow's enthusiasm was like that in the entire service. When he asked if anyone wanted for a prayer, half of the congregation came in. But out of nowhere, a desperate voice entered the church.

"MOVE! I WANT THAT!" the voice echoed and everyone became silent.

"_Déjà vu," _Shadow told himself.

"YOU! PLEASE, I WANT THAT! I WANT HIM!" a cat entered desperately and bowed down in front of the altar. Tears ran down his cheeks and Shadow began to walk down from the altar to the weeping cat.

"What is your name, sir?" Shadow kindly asked.

"Joshua, Joshua the Cat," he said.

Shadow and Joshua began to pray and Joshua converted to the Lord. Shadow smiled and spoke through the microphone a phrase that still echoes through his mind until today.

"Joshua,"

Josua looked up at him and smiled.

"Welcome to the family."

* * *

><p><strong>DONNEE! Hope you guys enjoy! And this story is now COMPLETED!<strong>

**READ AND REVIEW PLEASE! I love reviews! Stay tuned for **_**Camouflage! **_**Coming soon!**

**Love, Nameria**


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